Echo
by Bowenross
Summary: The soul. Is it the true source of light, of life? Does it protect us, hold our true selves safe? Echo, someone who has lived life before, now gets a second chance after the original soul of her body was stolen and her own was placed inside. How will her story play out, and what will her butterfly effect be? There are no third chances here. (On Hiatus)
1. Echo of the Soul-Prologue

**Okay all, this is my third fanfic ever, and the other two were written when I was in high school, so they sucked. This is my first RWBY fanfiction so any and all constructive criticism is welcome. (Any praise is also welcome). Also, I suck at beginnings so if this seems abrupt I apologize. Anyways, onto the story!**

 **(Disclaimer here: I do not own RWBY, all rights belong to Rooster Teeth and such, and any resemblance of characters to real people is simply coincidence)**

0~0~0~0

"It doesn't take much to see how good you'll taste slow cooked." This is what I heard before my arm was ripped off and I was knocked out. I jolted up in my bed, having woken up from my latest nightmare. They seemed to be happening more often lately, often featuring a cannibal of some sort. I laid back, wiping my hand across my forehead and looked at my bedside clock. It read two am, and I groaned softly.

Right after I laid my head down to attempt to sleep again, I heard the door down the hall open. I assumed it was my housemate going to the bathroom, but I grew suspicious when I heard tennis shoes instead of slippers on the hardwood floor. Slowly, I heard the other doors in the hallway open one by one. I quietly slipped out from my covers and slid into my closet, grabbing the shotgun that was not loaded along with the knife I had in one of my drawers.

I hid in there until I heard my door open. I hoped that whoever this was went to the bathroom door first before my closet door since it was more visible from the entry door. When I heard the bathroom door open I slid the barrel of the shotgun out of the closet door and nudged it open, and then I zeroed the sights on the intruder. He was armed with a revolver, all six shots still in (most likely) as I hadn't heard any gunshot when I woke up.

"Be quiet and slowly put the gun on the floor." I whisper shouted at him. He stiffened up and began to turn around. "I have a shotgun trained on you and I will not hesitate to fill you full of buckshot, so I suggest you do what I say!" He relented and slowly bent down, placing the gun on the tile of the bathroom. "Now kick it further in and place your hands on the back of your head."

He began to do what I said, but dropped down to grab the pistol. I dashed across the room and pulled out my knife. As soon as he had turned around with the gun in his hands, I stabbed his left kidney. He shouted in pain and I palmed his gun to my left while he grasped at the handle of the knife. Bringing most of my bodyweight into my swing, I elbowed his temple and he dropped like a sack of potatoes.

"Yo! Damien you all good dude? I heard a shout." Crap, he had a buddy. I grabbed the revolver off my carpet and grasped the unconscious man's collar, dragging him into the bathroom. This accomplice already knew something was up when Damien didn't answer him and he was going to see the blood that dripped into the carpet from the knife wound. I had no time to move from the bathroom before I heard the footsteps of this second intruder moving at my door.

"Damien?" I heard him check the closet before he gave a muffled curse. I grimaced. I left the shotgun out there. The bathroom's doorknob rattled and I fired off a round at the center of the door. "Fucking hell!" He fired into the cramped room and didn't hit his friend or me with bullets, but the ceramic tiles in the shower shattered and pieces dug into my back.

I fired another bullet, this time slightly to the right, lower down, and I heard the gun drop. I slammed the door open and kicked the gun away from him. I had hit him in the shoulder, presumably with the first bullet and then in the right upper chest with the second. What I hadn't accounted for, was him having a knife. He lunged at me when I went to check on my housemate and stabbed me in the back. The burning pain of the knife lanced through my body, causing me to stagger slightly before I whipped him in the temple with the butt of the pistol.

When I entered my friend's room, I saw that he had been tied up. I untied him as quickly as I could, starting to black out slightly. "Call 911 and tell them that there are two unarmed intruders in our home, one with a knife wound and one with two bullet wounds, both unconscious. And, one stabbed me."

"Holy shit, man!" He rushed into the living room and grabbed the landline. "Hello… yes this is…" I slouched to the floor and laid my forehead against the frame of his bed, struggling to stay awake until the medical personnel could get here. I coughed and blood came out, the dude who stabbed me must have gotten a lung or something. It was a short wait until the sound of sirens and shouts came from outside. One of the perks of living close to the police station and the hospital.

I was put sideways on a stretcher with the knife still in my back and carried into the ambulance. It was a blur, as they hooked me up to the machines they had in there and stabbed me with a few feel-good needles. Except one wasn't a feel-good needle, and my vision sharpened from the encroaching black circle that it had been before. Sounds also became clearer as I was wheeled out of the ambulance.

"I need a surgery room prepped yesterday. He has a punctured lung and heavy blood loss. We need his medical reports from the last three years…" I tuned out the rest of what he was saying and glanced around, spotting my friend watching me from his car. He must have followed the ambulance. I also spotted two more stretchers, for the intruders I had injured. I honestly didn't care at this point if either of them made it, as they had entered our house with the intent of stealing our shit while armed with lethal weapons.

I was beginning to black out again, and this time I was allowed to. They put a mask on over my face before I conked out and told me to breathe as deep as I could. Not really a good idea with the knife in my lung, but I did and was quickly out of it.

" _You know, being unconscious is just like being asleep, just weirder. Or it could be completely different for other people. This is honestly the first time I've been put under like this. The only other time I've been put under like this is when I got my wisdom teeth out."_ I spotted a bright light directly above my position. _"Must be waking up. Either in the middle of surgery, or my room lights are super bright."_ Without any thought, I was dragged upwards towards the light, almost as if there were hands wrapped around my body.

"…Okay, push again. Your baby is almost out!" Something was wrong. Very wrong. I couldn't think anything else before I was pulled into wakefulness, in the arms of a doctor who seemed to be much too large compared to me. "Congratulations Mrs. Sharp! It's a beautiful baby girl!"

In my defense, what happened next was completely out of my control. I screamed as loud as my lungs would allow me, a loud piercing shriek that caused some of the other people in the room to cover their ears and the doctor holding me to wince in pain. This couldn't be real. This was a dream caused by the drugs they had pumped me full of. This revelation caused me to stop screaming, and I immediately began to giggle.

"Well, she has a powerful set of lungs on her, doesn't she? Would you like to hold her?"

"Yes, let me see the face of my beautiful baby girl." The doctor handed me off to my 'Mom'. She was a pretty woman, looking to be in her late thirties maybe early forties. Mocha skin with dark purple hair. "Oh, how precious she is. Look at you." She cooed at me and jostled me up and down gently. I grabbed one of her fingers and wondered at how real this all seemed. "Oh, she knows who her mommy is, yes she does! Honey, look at her!"

A man that had previously been sitting in a chair I hadn't spotted before got up and loomed over us. This man was huge, in his early forties and had a lumberjack beard. He was also mocha skinned, but had bright red hair. I would be lying to myself if I said I didn't find him intimidating. But then his appearance made a one eighty as he squatted down and made a face that was given to babies most of the time. It was ridiculous. I laughed at how foolish he seemed, but he seemed to believe that it was my amusement with him and not at him.

"Oh, she thinks I'm funny! And you said that nobody would find me funny!" He gave a hearty laugh and stroked his beard (along with his ego).

"Dear, she's laughing at you, not with you." She looked down at me again and rubbed my tiny hands in between the finger I had grasped and her thumb. "I think her laughter sounds like a melody, I want her to be Melody Sharp."

The man, presumably my 'father', gasped at this and held a hand to his chest in mock rage. "Melody?! How could we name our strong child that? She deserves a strong name! Something like Adagio!"

"We are not calling her Adagio! And what do you mean strong child? She's going to be like her mother, not like you!"

They traded off insults at each other until I couldn't stand it anymore. So, I did the only real thing I could do for attention and screamed again, and this time it was even louder. I heard patients in other rooms complaining about it. And then, a very faint echo reached my ears. I stopped and waited for everyone to gather themselves from the assault on their ears.

"An echo? Dang, the whole hospital must have heard that." My father rubbed his ear before he was struck by an epiphany. "Wait, that's it! Her name is Echo! Echo Sharp!"

I rolled it around on my tongue for a moment before I beamed and said it. "Eh-o, yeh." Of course, it sounded like high pitched baby nonsense, I didn't have any teeth.

"Aww, look at her. Not even a day out and she thinks she's grownup." My father came down and nuzzled my face, his rough facial hair bristling against my newborn skin. I attempted to push him away, but couldn't, so I cursed my little baby limbs. I cursed them for the muscle that they lacked and the baby flab they had.

Just after he finally relented and moved away, I felt my stomach demand sustenance. I spied a nib of a bottle over on one of the tables and made grasping motions towards it. Hopefully I could mime out that I wanted to be fed. Luckily, my mother was observant enough to know what I was getting at.

"Honey, would you please grab one of those bottles over there. It seems that Echo is hungry." He just gave off a small grunt and proceeded to grab a bottle and a nib. His hand seemed to glow for a quick second before he took the top off the bottle and placed the nib it its place. Mother grabbed it from his offering hand and slowly moved it towards my lips.

The flavor of warm milk hit my taste buds and I greedily drank the liquid. "Now that everything seems to have calmed down, we'll get all the papers ready and have you out of here as soon as possible." The doctor and nurses left, after my mother gave a quiet thank you. I didn't really care; this milk was too good for its own good. And it was then that I realized that this was no dream. This was _real_.

The realization made me stop drinking, and mother assumed it was because I had consumed my fill of the milk. She then proceeded to burp me, and as much as it pains me to admit, it felt good. It was weird, you know, having a mother again. My first mother died when I was fifteen due to cancer. I gave my praises up to whatever god or gods were up there right now for giving me this second chance. Though, of course, I also cursed them for putting me in the body of a girl. After living for twenty-five years as a male, I knew it was going to be Hell learning how to deal with all the things females had to put up with that males didn't.

This newest revelation, along with being mostly full and warm, started to lull me to sleep. Mother softly hummed a lullaby, quickening my progress to slumber. The dreamscape was just as blank as ever, when I first entered it. I was back in my original body, my mind more familiar with my previous form. But there was a small speck in the distance that caught my eye. I started to slowly float towards it, and it floated towards me.

"…hank you."

"What, did you just speak to me floating ball?"

"Yes, and I'm more than that… but it doesn't really matter now. You won't hear from me again after this, I just came to tell you that you saved the body of the one you replaced, as the soul was taken."

"Whoa, hold up a second there. My dreams may talk to me, but nothing like referencing my real life unless it's one of those freaky future dreams."

"Shut up and listen to me. You were brought here on a whim. Your soul was the closest when this young girl's was taken from her body. Like it or not, this is your new life. You get no help from me or any other being above the mortal plane. So, buckle up buttercup, you already pissed me off. Bye." The orb disappeared, leaving me there in the white space alone.

"Well, what a pleasant being! _Not_." I was roused from sleep with the need to relieve myself. With my powerful observation skills and a quick scan of my surroundings, I could tell it was sometime at night. Super fucking useful observation me. Maybe the next thing that comes up will be that the room is blue, or that _I'm still a girl_. That being said, I still had to pee.

I glanced downwards, getting quickly annoyed at my neck rolls, and I spotted a diaper. I let the urine flow, and I immediately regretted the decision. The smell was _rank_. It smelled like buttered popcorn had gotten soaked in urine and stuffed in the heating vent, growing mold in a brief period of time and pumped through the vents straight into my nostrils. "Aaaaaaaahhhhh gahhhhhhh!"

The door burst from its frame not even four seconds later, with my father holding a massive war axe. His Hazel eyes quickly scanned the room for the thing that made me cry. He lowered the weapon when he realized that there was nothing here. His face scrunched up when he got a whiff of my diaper's contents. "Well, look who made a mess of their diapy. Let me just clean this up so I can get back to sleep."

He lifted me from my crib while making sure to not hit me with the mobile above the crib. He then brought me over to a table situated against the wall with the busted door. A new diaper was pulled from a box while the one I was wearing was deftly removed and tossed into the trash. Unless that trash was taken out immediately, it would still stink up the room, so I didn't really see why he threw it in there.

"Thanks for not wiggling around, Echo. Heh, this is going to be easier than the others said. They said you would be a hellion and would not be an angel unless you wanted something from me. They also said you would be exactly like your mom, but I can tell you're going to be just like me. And I can say all of this to you because I know that you don't understand me at all." He nuzzled his face into mine, his beard bristling against my face again.

" _You don't understand the can of worms you just opened on yourself, buddy._ " I filled my lungs and let out another echoing wail, the windows rattled and a door down the hall (or perhaps somewhere else in the house) crashed open and the patter of feet rushed to my room. Mother entered, wielding a sword and shield. Her eyes zeroed in on me, in the arms of my father. I gave what I assumed to be a smug grin to my father before he was shouldered into the wall and mother caught me in her arms.

"Shh, shh, I've got you. Nothing's going to hurt you. Everything's fine." Everything was obviously not fine, if the groans coming from the hole in the wall housing my father were any indication to the situation. "Rowen, what did you do to make her so upset?"

"Nothing!" She sent a glare his way. "I swear on my beard, Fila, that I did nothing that would upset her so much that she would yell again."

She kept glaring for a few more seconds, content to just watch him sweat and second guess himself, but then she relented and went back to paying attention to the baby in her arms. " _I'm still wondering why these two came running in here with weapons like those. Must be a bad neighborhood or something._ " She placed me back in my crib, but now before planting a kiss on my forehead.

"Now that all that is taken care of, a bed time story to help you get to sleep. Once upon a time, there was a wizard, who resided in a small hut in a field. He was alone, but he was content with what he had. One day, four young maidens wandered near his hut. He was ecstatic "My, how blessed am I to have visitors. I can't quite remember the last time I saw someone. Please come in and have some tea or coffee. Tell me of your travels." And so, the four maidens had tea with the wizard and told him of their travels, wearing down the day with their tales."

" _This sounds more like something I've heard from RWBY rather than a tale in my other life. But then again, wouldn't RWBY be a tale from my old life as well?_ _Wait… if this ends with the four maidens becoming the maidens of the seasons, then I'm on Remnant. That means Grimm. Now the weapons might make sense._ "

"Sadly, the sun was nearly about to set, and the maidens had to return to their travels. So, the wizard saw them off, but not without giving them something. It was both a tremendous blessing and a terrible curse. He made them the maidens of the seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. He knew they would wield these powers for good by listening to them. And then, they were gone, split to the four winds so that they could help others and keep the powers they held safe. And for the wizard? It's said that he still lives in that hut to this day, watching over travelers and hunters alike, seeing if there are any who can help the world and halt the Grimm threat."

She said nothing more before she pushed the mobile above my bed, setting it into motion. The slowly rotating shapes ushered me to slumber as mother, or Fila now that I know her name, helped Rowen out of the wall. The last thing before I was fully asleep that I heard was Fila telling Rowen that he was 'going to repair that hole in the wall first thing come morning'.

0~0~0~0

My slumber this time was dreamless, as I woke when there were rays of light coming in through the window and my stomach was yelling at me to get something to eat. I rolled over, intending to get out of bed before remembering where and what I was. I could pick out the sounds of metal clanking against metal, like pans coming together or pans against the metal fins on a stove. The hole that had been created was patched up, though very crudely in my opinion.

"Honey, could you go and see if Echo is up yet."

"Fila, if she was up, you know she would be wailing. Mrs. Turner next door said that it was normal for babies to start yelling when they wake up."

"Just go check on her." The no nonsense tone of her voice earned her a grumble from the man before the scraping of chair legs was heard.

"Yes, dear." The footsteps neared my room and he poked his head in, looking at my crib. I gave him a stare like no other, the stare only a baby can give. He locked up and I intensified my stare. He started to shake, like I was staring into his soul and revealing all his sins for the world to see. I opened my little mouth and took in a deep breath… "Oh dear Oum, no! Not again!"

I shut my mouth again, releasing the air with a puff from my nose. He gave a sigh of relief and came over to the crib, gently picking me out from it. "Well, now that you're up, let's see about getting you something to eat. He took me out towards the kitchen through a narrow hallway with only three actual doorways and an opening at the end that opened to the living room. The kitchen was portioned off by a half wall, and that was where mother was.

"So, I take it by the fact that you're quiet that she was up?"

"She still is up, I'm carrying her right now." He set me down in a baby seat with one of those tiny tables in front of it. "Surprised she didn't yell her head off again. Though she made like she was going to for a sec there."

Fila just hummed and flipped something in the pan. Rowen went back to his seat and flipped open a newspaper that he had probably put down to check upon me. Silence reigned in the kitchen for a few minutes, with only the scraping of the pan and plates in the background. I started to tap my pudgy little fingers against the plastic table, growing impatient. Fila noticed before Rowen did and huffed.

"Rowen, did you not get her something to eat?"

"No, I didn't. I thought you were making her something?"

"No, I'm not making her something! We have baby food in the fridge, along with bottles of milk. Please take care of our daughter while I make OUR food."

He rolled his eyes and got up again, placing the paper down. Moving to the fridge, he opened it and grabbed a container of baby food and a bottle of milk. The hand holding the bottle glowed again, and he placed the bottle on the tray while he went to grab a spoon. I put my hand to the bottle and it was warm. His semblance must be to heat things with his palms, which probably wasn't that great a semblance for his weapon. He came back with the container open and a spoon sticking up out of it.

"Here you go, open on up kid." He got a decent amount of the goop on the spoon and moved it towards my mouth. I took a tentative mouthful of it and cringed at the taste. It was like leafy hospital food. I reluctantly swallowed it so I didn't cough it out. I stuck my tongue out to show my obvious disgust in the food. He chuckled and got another spoonful of it. "Just a few more and you're done. I know this stuff don't taste great, but it's all you're going to get for a while."

A few more spoonsful of that and it was done. He tossed the empty container into the trash and came back to help with the bottle, as I could not hold it on my own with my puny limbs. The taste of the warm milk helped wash out the taste of whatever I had just ingested, and I was grateful for that. With the bottle quickly emptied, he gave me a minute to get it digesting before picking me up and giving me a soft pat on the back. A small burp came out and a pressure that I hadn't noticed before vanished.

Fila placed two plates on the table, filled with bacon, hash browns and eggs. The amount was honestly surprising until I remembered that at least one was a hunter and the other had training at the least. "Did Henryk tell you if you're close to clearing the caves near town yet?"

"Yeah, he said there's only a few more pockets left, we should be able to finish it up today with no problems. Then those Schnee guys can set up their equipment, and we'll get our final pay for this thing."

Fila sighed, putting her fork down. "I just wish it wasn't the Schnees. Why couldn't it have been that group setting up in Mistral?"

"Because those guys know they're going to go out soon. The SDC has a monopoly on dust and will drive them out of the market soon. I know you didn't want me to take this job for them, because of their views on Faunus, but we need the money even more now with an extra mouth to feed and look after."

"I just… have a bad feeling about those caves nowadays. It's like there's something hiding in there that needs to stay there." She just shook her head and picked up her fork again, beginning to finish off the rest of her breakfast.

"Well, if there is something like that, then we're leaving at the first sign something is up." He glanced at the clock ticking away in the living room. "Crap, it's about time I left." He shoveled the rest of the food on his plate into his mouth and chugged the coffee he had. He gave Fila's forehead a light peck and did the same for me. "I'll be back at six. Love you both!"

With that, he exited the front door. "How about we read a book while we wait for you to get sleepy." Fila picked me up and carried me to the couch, where there were already a collection of picture books waiting. We spent close to an hour reading, well, her reading aloud and me silently wondering what these caves were holding. Dust, obviously, but what kind and in what amount. I grew tired and was carried back to my crib, gently placed inside and sung to sleep.

The next time I woke, it was to screams. It wasn't six. Rowen wasn't coming back. Fila ran into my room and grabbed me, rushing me into a garage I hadn't seen yet. There was a small room in the wall, behind a steel door that looked like the wall from the outside.

"Honey, I love you." And with that, she left me there, in that dark cold room.

These were the last words I heard from my new mother.


	2. Chapter 1- A Single Light

I don't know how long I was stuck in that room, but it was a long time for sure. Every once and awhile, there would be scratching on the outside, lesser Grimm attempting to enter. They would leave quickly once they realized they weren't able to penetrate the wall. " _My life already sucks. Not even a day old, or just over, and my parents are dead. And what's more, the town is most likely destroyed by Grimm. When I pissed of that ball, or whatever it was, I did not expect this."_ I fell asleep listening to the scratches of another Grimm trying to breach the walls of my haven.

0-0-0

Explosions. The rocking of the earth and the concussive sound woke me. It seems that either gas lines were hit, or the hunters showed up. I could only pray to whatever there was out there that it wasn't the gas line. As the sounds got closer, I could pick out that they were spaced apart in irregular intervals. A gas line would be more consistent, which meant that these were explosions caused by hunters. The room shook when a blast went off right next to the room, and a dent formed in the corner.

"Hey! Watch where you're shooting those! That's a safe room, and you see that light? It means someone is in there you idiot!" This person that was yelling started giving out orders to clear the immediate area and call for a med evac.

" _Lady, there's no need for a med evac, just get me some dang food and milk. Some applesauce would be absolutely lovely right now, with cinnamon. I could live off that for the rest of my life (granted I was also taking pills for other necessary vitamins), but that's not the point._ "

The door slowly opened, and dust and rubble mixed with the stale air inside the room. "We have one survivor! One Faunus infant!" The shouting lady was tall, barely able to fit inside the door without ducking. "Hey there, we're gonna get you out of here nice and safe. We need you to be brave, no crying." She lifted me, cradling me in one of her arms and grabbing a mask with her other. She loosely fit the mask over my face and my vision was obscured by the white material.

" _Sure lady, cover up my entire face. It doesn't look like I died at all. At least it's not a white cloth._ " The sounds of fighting got further away, and I realized what she said before when she told her squad about me. " _I'm a Faunus? That's some fucking news to me. Then again, it's not like a doctor or parent is going to tell their newborn child that it's a Faunus. It's not like they even understand them or will remember it into adolescence._ "

The thrum of engines replaced the sounds of battle, and the displacement of air made my skin uncomfortably dry. I was handed off to someone, presumably a medic, and then placed inside of the aircraft. Now inside what I presume to be a Bullhead, the noises from outside were muted, and we lifted off. I heard nothing other than the hum of the engine and the pilot speaking to air control and a hospital over the radio. We would be landing on dirt, not a helipad, so this place was most likely small. I heard the name _Ansel_ somewhere in there. It was somewhat familiar, but I couldn't place my finger on it.

Passage of time was never my strong suit, so what could have been an hour of flight felt like thirty minutes. The touchdown was soft, a testament to the pilot's skills, or just the technology of the craft. The doors opened and the thrum of the engines was back in full force once more. "We have plenty of space in pediatrics. I want someone monitoring this child, and get something for her to eat." The arms that now held me were not as muscled as the huntress that removed me from my room, but they were still solid.

A television playing in the lobby was on a news channel, the camera inside a Bullhead. "We have a new report to make! It seems that a survivor of this terrible event was found!" I caught a glimpse of the screen, as the cameraman zoomed in on what I could only assume was me.

" _Terrible event? That was a straight up massacre. I still hate news people even though I know they have a reason to downplay things here. Still, I'm the only survivor of the entire town? Was my room the only safe room, or were there others they hadn't found yet?_ " I didn't really have much time to ponder the implications of this, as a spoon was waving in front of my face now, some sort of food on it. I opened my mouth and was pleasantly surprised when I could ingest this stuff without my face scrunching up.

"She likes spinach. Which is good, she needs the iron." Ugh, spinach. I used to like the stuff in my original infancy as well. "Let's get her a crib set up, pink pad, and if someone could warm me up a bottle of milk." Yes, I do want _pink_ bedding lady, thank you. Next thing you know, I'm going to be wearing a frock with a neon pink pacifier in my mouth. "Put her up next to the Arc girl, I guess."

" _Oh, mother fuckers, I know you did not just say Arc. And a girl, so not Jaune. Is this before Jaune, or after Jaune? Years after Jaune? Where in the flipping fuck am I on the timeline?"_ I was gently placed in my new crib and waited a few minutes before the nurse came back with a bottle of milk. After she had finished feeding me she burped me and placed me back down in the crib. Am I the only one concerned about sanitation right now, I was just outside and I'm covered in dust. Do they not understand how bad this can be for a baby's health?

There was a short amount of scribbling the nurse made on a clipboard before she stuck it to the end of the crib. She left without another word, closing the door softly behind her. Oh, joy, what an experience this is going to be. Stuck in a room with infants, primed to scream their little lungs out as soon as their diapers were soiled or they were hungry. Let's see how long this takes to make me insane.

0-0-0

Three days, as far as I could tell. Only three days until I lost my wits. These children were incessant, crying and yelling at the smallest of things. A nurse was always nearby, which helped. If there hadn't been any nurses close by always, it would have only been one day until I lost it. Then, on the fourth day, there was a change.

The normal nurse that came in to check on Lily Ark (the child in the crib beside mine) also picked me up from mine. A surprise to me, as I was bored out of my gourd before she slipped her arm beneath me. I could see two people standing outside the glass to view the room. One was a tall blond man, a strong figure, and the other was a woman with slightly darker blonde hair, but she had a motherly figure. They also had shockingly blue eyes, like fresh cut sapphires. They were unmistakably the Arc parents, I could see where Jaune got his looks from.

And holding onto the mother's hand, was one little boy. Jaune Arc in all his toddler glory people, wearing a little blue bunny suit. I had to hold in my giggles, for they could never know I found that amusing. But, what was I being carried out for? Did someone want to see me for tests or something, or was I going to get a new set of clothes and a good bath, because I was still filthy. I could feel the little spots of dirt and grime clinging to my skin.

"Here are your daughters, Mrs. And Mr. Arc." She spoke softly before handing us over to the two parents. I was being adopted, by the Arcs. What the heckie was going on here.

"Thank you, Aqua." Mother Arc (still don't know her name at this point) softly spoke to the nurse. Lily made grabbing motions towards her mother's face and was brought close in. Lily grabbed her mother's nose and giggled when Mrs. Arc made a little honking noise.

This was great and all, but I still had no explanation as to why they were adopting me. My neutral expression caused Mr. Arc to chuckle, as he held me in front of himself. "She reminds me of Rowen with that face. Junie, look at her little face!" Okay then, that answers why they're adopting me I guess. They knew my parents at some point, so this was some sort of obligation or something.

"You're right, Nickie, she looks just like him. All wrinkled and angry." She chuckled at the mental image of something, most likely me with my father's face plastered onto my own head.

"Oh Oum, I would hope she didn't look exactly like him. That would be really freaky when she grew up." He gave a hearty chuckle and cradled me in his arms. His arms felt like that huntress that rescued me from my safe room, well-muscled from either training or work. I couldn't really disapprove of this dude, I could tell he would face a Grimm unarmed if it meant he protected his family. "Jaune, look at your new little sister."

Nicholas (just going to call him that because I think that's his actual name) kneeled and showed me to Jaune. "She 'as bat eers." Well now I know why my hearing is so sensitive, and what my Faunus trait is. I would have hoped that I had a tail or something easy to hide. "She really my nu sister?"

Nicholas patted his son's head and grinned. "Yeah, she's your sister as of today, and I expect you to treat her the same as you do the others and Lily. She's an Arc now, and we always protect our family, no matter what."

"Like a knight!" Jaune hopped up and down with a massive smile on his face, and sparkles in his eyes. He was rather adorable at this age, and I could only think that he kind of resembled a dog. Now that I think of it, he can pull off that look of a kicked puppy well later. Must be an inherent skill he gained early in on life. "I well be tha bestest brother!"

"The best brother, Jaune, not 'tha bestest'. But you're learning quickly, and before you know it you'll be able to go to school. And then you'll make friends, and then find a girlfriend, and then…" Junie ranted on for some time while we made our way out of the hospital about how Jaune would grow up. It also involved much coddling from his sisters and other such stuff that I tuned out. As long as I would have something to do soon and I got a bath, I would be happy.

It was a short walk from the hospital to the Arc family household, maybe only fifteen minutes. This place was large, but not really in the best of shape. There were a few boards of siding coming off and some roof tiling was slipping off as well. They probably bought it for cheap because they needed to fit in a large family. Hopefully Lily and I would be the last children to enter this household, because I don't think I could take any more younger siblings. Heck, Lily was probably older than me by a day or something, so that made me technically the youngest in the house.

"Welcome home lovelies, to the Fortress of Arc!" When nothing was heard from either Lily or I, Nicholas frowned and huffed out his nose. "Fine, teach me to make a grand show of our home. Ridicule me for my enthusiasm. But you won't be mocking me when it becomes a museum!"

" _Yes, yes I will be mocking you. I will mock you all I want, and you will most likely put up with it._ " When we entered we were greeted by six smiling faces, the Arc girls in full force now. " _Oh gods, a house full of eight girls and two dudes. This is going to be a living hell. Maybe Nicholas has a shed out back that I can hide out in and call my man cave._ "

"And here are your loving sisters, you two. Not that you'll understand me, but they are, from left to right: Acacia, Bluebell, Camellia, Clover, Dahlia, and Fleur."

Acacia rushed up and held my hand in two of her fingers. "Look at her fingers! How cute! And her toes too! Was I this small when I was born?"

"No, you take after me a bit more than your mother. Echo here takes more after your mum." Nicholas, you lying rat.

"Why does she have bat ears?" The one who asked was Clover, and it looked like she and Camellia were twins. They even had similar hairstyles, only parted on the other side to make differentiating them possible.

"Yeah, we have a wolf Faunus uncle, not a bat one." Great deduction from Camellia. Regular detectives here guys. Maybe they would open a detective agency with their great skills.

"You actually have a second uncle that was a bat Faunus, on my side of the family. We just don't talk about him much, because he was kind of weird. I think he's in that Funny farm over in Atlas right now." He got an elbow to the ribs for that, courtesy of his wife. "Fine, fine, any more questions or are we all going to welcome them home?"

In unison, almost perfectly, they yelled "Welcome home!" This, of freaking course, made Lily start to cry because of how loud they had been. And I most likely get to share a room with this girl. Lovely…

0-0-0

 _7 Years Later…_

We celebrated my birthday on the same day as Lily's, saying we were twins. The lie had stayed in place during my time here, that I was an actual Arc child. My hair had turned out to be a pale pink, and my eyes were forest green. I don't see how anyone could mistake me for an Arc, when they had pale blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. But, even despite my differences, I was an Arc in name. The only three that knew (other than me of course) were Fleur, Juniper and Nicholas.

Lily and I blew out the candles on our birthday cake and the others cheered. Arc family birthdays were always important things, and Nicholas and Juniper spared nearly no expenses on pampering their children when their birthdays came up. I had learned early on, when they had gotten me things I didn't even want, to just tell them what I wanted. They, of course, were shocked when I told them I wanted new history and dust books when they had been getting me dolls and dresses and makeup. This was also when I was just a year old, so when their daughter asked "Please get me hithtory books and dusht books", their shock was well justified.

School was worse than home, of course. There were still racists even here in Ansel, there were just fewer than in the big cities. But when your town has only about fifty kids around your age, it made it seem much worse. I also skipped grades, my intelligence from my previous life boosting me from preschool to the second grade with no problem thanks to my studying of the history and dust books I had received for my birthdays, which made me a bigger target for bullying. Jaune had tried to help, but he just got picked on as well, for having a Faunus sister, one that didn't even look like the rest of the Arc family.

I, of course, shrugged off the bullying as something inane and childish. They would grow out of it in time, and see just how ridiculous they were being. The rest of the arc family, after being told by Jaune that I was getting bullied, didn't see it the same way. Nicholas had wanted to talk to the principal of the school, to see what they could do to stop the bullying. I had to talk him down, along with the rest of the family when they were dragged into the argument between us. Then when all had been defused, he brought me up in a tight hug and started crying.

"My girl is growing up so fast! Too fast! Please slow down so we can enjoy these years some more!" I, of course, had rolled my eyes at his antics. I was already technically grown up, mentally at least, my body was just having to play catch-up.

But back to the party. Lily had gotten a new dress from each of our sisters and a dollhouse with a full set of dolls from our parents. Jaune had gotten her a star wand night light, because she was still afraid of the dark. And it bothered me, because she would insist on keeping our light on at night, and it kept me awake for far too long. I mouthed 'thank you' to Jaune and he just nodded, understanding why I thanked him. Sometimes, he would pass by our room in the middle of the night to head to the bathroom and he would be blinded by the light coming from our room.

Everyone had gotten me spare parts for a project I was working on. Luckily, there had been a shop out back where I could hide out in. Nicholas was out there most often with me, whenever he had the time. And Jaune would come out there every once and awhile, just to get away from all the girls. He told me that talking to me was like talking to an older brother, which he didn't really understand all that well because all he had were older sisters and two younger sisters.

The party went on until Lily grew tired, and that signaled the end of it. Everyone helped clean up, putting away dishes and throwing away wrapping paper, before heading off to bed. I had put my parts in the shop, on the workbench I was using. Everything was ready, now all I had to do was put it together. I walked into mine and Lily's room, yawning and stretching my hands above my head. She had already Put her nightlight in one of the wall sockets on her side of the room.

It was easy to tell which side belonged to who. Hers was a dark shade of purple, with toys scattered around. Mine was neat and orderly, with bookshelves and a desk in the space not taken up by the bed. I divested myself of my dirty clothes, tossing them in the hamper, then I donned my sleep clothes and crawled under my sheets. I laid there for what felt like hours before there was a soft knock on the door, only something I could hear. Nicholas had quickly learned what my range of hearing was when he had accidentally woken me up when I was younger.

"You awake still?" He softly asked, so as to not wake Lily. I made a hum of affirmation and he inched the door open. "Can you come out to the shop, your mom and I have something to talk to you about."

I quietly got my shoes on and followed him out the back door. We stopped being quiet once we had entered the shop, the familiar smells of wood and metal calming me down. What did they need to talk to me about? Were they sending me away somewhere to get me tested again? Were they sending me to school somewhere else? The thoughts rattled around inside my head, before they were stopped when Nicholas picked me up and placed me on his knee. Juniper was sitting on the seat next to us, with a birth certificate in her hand behind her back.

"We have something really important to tell you, Echo. It might come as a shock, but it doesn't mean that you mean any less to us than the others. We love you all the same, just don't freak out." He tried to be calm, but I could see just how frightened he was under the calm façade.

I couldn't help but chuckle, and his face became confused, and he started sputtering. "If you guys are going to tell me I'm adopted, then I already knew!" The new shocked looks on their faces were enough to send me into hysterics. "You can't tell me you thought I was fooled? The others might have been, except for Fleur, but I knew. Even Jaune forgot that day in the hospital when you came to pick Lily and I up." The sharp intake of breath from Juniper made me stop. The frightened look in her eyes was new, deeper than what it should have been for something like telling your daughter she was adopted.

"But, how, how would you know about that? Aqua told us that your files had been changed in the hospital." She started to shake, and had to place both her hands on the table to help stop it, the birth certificate on full view now.

"Because I remember. I remember my day of birth, my mother and father. A small bit of our home, just my room, the living and dining room, the garage, and that safe room that my other mother put me in to keep me safe. Maybe just a day old, and already an orphan, the last survivor of the village destroyed by Grimm that had been hiding in a cave. A miracle, as the other safe boxes had been empty, or filled with dead bodies of those unfortunate enough to not get the doors closed in time.

The open horror on their faces was heart wrenching, and I sighed. "I came to terms with this ages ago. I'm an Arc now, and will continue to be. I love you two just as much as my real parents." Tears were spilling forth from their eyes as they embraced me, soaking into my sleep shirt. When they pulled away, Juniper wiped a hand across her eyes and pulled out a handkerchief to blow her nose on. Nicholas had simply blinked his eyes a few more times to clear them out.

"You said you remember. How?" The question came from Nicholas. His right hand was gripping the table like Juniper's had been.

"You might not believe me, but this isn't exactly my first life." Their incredulous looks made me chuckle. "Yeah, I know, it makes me sound like I need to go to a funny farm like out second uncle that was a bat Faunus. Over in Atlas, you know." It took a few seconds before it clicked, and Nicholas had the decency to look sheepish at that. "But, yeah, once I was seven years old, then my mother told me to make friends so I wouldn't be lonely. Once I was eleven years old, my father told me to find a girl to make my wife or I'd be lonely. Once, I was twenty years old and I was on my way to making my place in life. I never made it to thirty."

Juniper's soft gasp and a fresh wave of tears made it clear they knew what I was talking about. So, I told them of my previous life, and into the night we talked about what I wanted to do with what I had now. "I want to be a Hunter. Well, Huntress, I guess." There were objections to this, but I held fast in my resolve. I would not be swayed from this path I was putting myself on. Finally, they relented.

"I'll put in a word with the other Hunters in the village to see when they'll train you." He looked down to the floor and softly shook his head. "This is absurd. Here we were thinking that we would tell you that you were adopted and you would get angry or sad, the typical things that go through the minds of those learning they were adopted. But no, you go and defy the norm like you always do, and drop this whole story on us. Let me unlock your aura, but know that you **cannot** wander from the village with it unlocked and no training."

"I know, I've studied this stuff. It acts like a brighter beacon to the Grimm, more so than a normal civilian with their auras locked." And I had done studying, extensive studying. I had finished all the books in the local library and had resorted to reading from a computer for more information. The librarian had been absolutely astonished when I finished the last book in the library. She had told me that there were adults that had been living there their entire lives that had never finished all the books.

"I know, I was just making sure to pound it in good so you didn't go and do something stupid. No using it to take care of bullies either." He wagged his finger in front of my face and I just rolled my eyes. "I didn't hear a promise to not use it that way."

I sighed and held my hand over my heart. "I hereby promise to not use my aura or training on those currently bullying me, or those that bully me in the future, so long as they do not deserve it wholly and completely brought by their transgressions upon me."

He rolled it around in his head for a second before shrugging his shoulders. "Good enough for me. Now close your eyes and breathe deeply. This can take some effort on your part to make it less taxing on me." He placed his hands sturdily on my shoulders as I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, waiting for him to begin. **"It is by Our hands and the hands of our ancestors that guide you."** A pulse, barely noticeable, made its way through me. **"That this flame is brought to your own torch to carry."** Another pulse, stronger than the last, and emanating deep inside my chest. I focused on it, willing it to come forward. **"To guide your way through the darkness, and to dispel the darkness that would seek to harm you and yours. To burn bright and long, to light other's ways. It is by Our hands now, that this flame and protection are placed upon you now and We guard you from going up in those very flames."**

The lights flickered as my aura pulsed out, and Nicholas fell to his knees, panting hard. Juniper ran to him, but he held his hand up to tell her he would be fine. After taking a second to recuperate, he stood once again and walked over to the chair he had been sitting in before. With a huff, he sat down. "I don't know how you weren't attracting Grimm even without your aura unlocked. It is much larger than I was expecting. It's a good thing you helped, otherwise I may have blacked out doing that. Of course, this also means that you need training much more urgently now. Excuse me, I need to make those calls now."

He left the shop at a brisk walk. I bet he forgot there was a phone out here, but maybe he just didn't remember the numbers of the village's Hunters by heart, so I guess it made sense that he would get his scroll. Juniper hugged me softly from behind. "Remember, that no matter what happens, we will always love you. If you don't want to continue with this later on, just tell us."

"I know. I love you too." I hugged her arms against my chest, feeling comforted by the familiar warmth. "I should probably get to bed soon. No telling how hectic tomorrow is going to be. And please, don't tell any of the girls or Jaune about this. I want it to just be our happy family like it always has been."

"Of course." Her matter of fact tone was strong, she would keep her word. She probably had planned on keeping this secret from the beginning. "I'll be sure to tell Nickie to keep it quiet as well."

I gave a hum of pleasure and stepped from her arms. I gave a brief glance back and smiled before I too left the shop and headed into the main house. I made my way back to the room where Lily was still sleeping and took off my shoes, slipping into the covers once again.

Sleep came easily now, the light resting inside my body keeping me warm from the frost that once kept me awake.


	3. Chapter 2- Different

"Good morning, Echo!" Lily shouted in my ear. I groaned. Lately, Lily seemed to like yelling to wake me up, and none of the others seemed to mind it. They acted like it was normal, like an Arc tradition or something. It might as well be, I guess, but I wouldn't be doing it any time soon. I'm really stuck on this if you couldn't tell. I don't like being woken up by someone yelling in my ear.

"I'm up, stop yelling please." I groaned out, wiping the sleep from my eyes. She jumped out the door, heading down to breakfast. I got dressed and followed after her, slowly working the sleep from my body with some stretching. When I reached the table, everyone else was already sitting down with their preferred breakfasts in front of them. This consisted of mostly eggs in various prepared forms, bacon, and fruit slices. Jaune and Lily got Pumpkin Pete cereal, chocked full of sugar they just couldn't get enough of.

After grabbing my share of protein and fruit, I sat on down. Nicholas put down his fork and wiped off some egg that had gotten into his beard. "So, Echo has something to tell everyone." I just looked at him, confused for a second before recognition dawned on me.

"I'm going to be training to be a Huntress." The shocked looks lasted only a second before Fleur recovered.

"You can't be serious! You're only seven, and people don't start training until they're at least ten!"

"It's true," Nicholas cut her off. "She's going to be training under the Huntsmen and Huntresses in the village starting today after school. I've even called in a favor from one of my old colleagues working at Signal."

That got my attention. He knew someone working at Beacon, and got a favor from them? I ran through the list of people I knew worked at Signal, but I couldn't think of anyone Nicholas might really know. Then again, I only know of two people, and neither of those really appealed to me. "Who is it, if you don't mind me asking."

"I'm not going to tell you." He smirked. "And it's not like you know him anyways, he's never been here before. And it's better to be a surprise anyways, just to see the look on your face. I'll be sure to bring a camera, or get a picture on my scroll."

Yeah, dad, I'll give a real shocked face. Not as shocked as you'll be when I give you a zap though." The last bit was mumbled under my breath, as I picked at the bacon that had cooled off.

"What was that, Echo?" Juniper asked as she passed by, dropping her dishes in the sink.

"Nothing, mum." The rest of breakfast was spent in relative silence, with the only things being spoken about were school projects going on and bills that needed to be taken care of. Jaune had this look on his face, though, one that spoke of hurt and longing. I would be sure to keep an eye on him today, make sure he didn't get into trouble.

"Acacia, if you would take Lily, Jaune and Echo to school now, that would be greatly appreciated. Your father and I have to go over to the Hunter's office to take care of some paperwork."

"You got it, mom. They're be there, safe and sound before the bell even rings!" She gave a salute before turning to us. "Come on guys, get your supplies and we'll get going." We rolled our eyes but spent no time delaying anything. Acacia was the firstborn and golden child of the Arc household. We had to live up to her achievements in our eyes, which for me, wasn't that hard after learning to read the language on Remnant.

Oh yeah, I forgot to say that the written language in Remnant is not English. The spoken language, at least around here, is Valean. And it sounds exactly like English, but the written language is like putting English and German together with different letters instead of the normal alphabet. It took me some months to get the hang of it, but after I got it I was able to polish it up quickly to the point where I had absolutely no troubles reading. I was writing in a journal (not a diary, like Lily likes to call it) in English to keep up with everything that happened lately and what I knew of from the show.

After getting our supplies, we headed out the front door, following Acacia like a line of ducks following their mother. It was humiliating to me, yes, but if I headed off to school by myself I would be scolded by her. And I would worry the rest of the family, especially since they knew I was being bullied. The school wasn't that far, and it was in a pretty well-lit area with little vegetation in the way. If I was to be bullied there, then it would be immediately seen by an adult, and the bullies would be reprimanded.

Acacia dropped us off and gave us our lunches, reminding us to wait for her or one of the others to come pick us up after school got out. We agreed and she left off, leaving us to get to our classes. I said goodbye to Lily and Jaune, quickly heading off for my own class, because the teacher was extremely strict. And I wanted to get to working on a design for my weapon, since I knew I wasn't going to be taking Crocea Mors. That would be left to Jaune.

Right outside the class, I was stopped by a group of boys older than me. The group was led by a boy two and a half years older than me, named Roan. "So, the bat still comes to school. Didn't we tell you that you weren't welcome here, pipsqueak?"

"Yes, you did. And I remember telling you that I don't care what you think. Please vacate the doorway, as some of us still wish to get an education and not be stuck working beating metal for horseshoes at our father's forge." I made to move past him into the classroom, but was slammed against the doorframe.

"Hey, bitch, no-one talks about me that way."

"Oh, that's a naughty word there, Roan. Did your dad talk about what it means, or was he talking to your mom when he said it? Maybe it was about you, how you like picking on girls more than two years younger than you." His face kept getting redder the longer I went on, and the boys behind him were looking like they wanted to leave.

"Oh, that's it!" He swung a fist at my head, and I dipped it to the side. His fist connected with the doorway and a snap was heard. He yelled, dropping me to cradle his hand.

"You might want to go to the nurse to get that checked out. It didn't sound very good." I patted him on the shoulder and entered the classroom as he and his friends moved off towards the nurse's office. There was no need to antagonize him like that, but I just felt like it. He had been picking on me for too long now, and I just really didn't like him. What a joy Cardin would be, if I even went to Beacon. I got out some graph paper and my sketching pencil when I got to my desk and got started working on a design for my weapon.

I decided that I would go with something I knew what to fight with, a short sword. There would be dust channels on the inside, and the blade would break apart into two single edged blades. The handles would be where the dust was stored. One side would be lightning dust and ice, while the other would be fire and gravity. After drawing up some rough schematics, I began fully fleshing them out with the numbers on how long each part would have to be and how they would piece together with mechashift technology.

This lasted until the teacher came in and told the class to calm down and get out our math books, and to turn to page 135. I may hate math, but that doesn't mean I'm bad at it, and this stuff was horrible. Horribly boring, I could do this stuff while half awake and not make any errors. Another reason why I was a teacher's "pet" was that I found everything extremely easy and passed it with one hundred percent every time. If I could just take a graduation test now and skip schooling to focus on Huntsman training I would take it in a heartbeat.

I was called up to take care of some problems, making sure to show my work on each one. There were a few that I worked differently than what she had taught us, but she just praised me in thinking a unique way. As long as we got the correct answer, she was pleased with our progress. The lesson was about to end when Roan came back, his hand in a cast.

"And where have you been, Mister Leathe?"

"I was at the nurse's office after Arc broke my hand." HE sneered at me when the teacher turned her back on him to look at me.

"Is this true, Miss Arc? Did you break his hand?"

"No, I did not Ma'am. He broke it himself upon the doorway when I dodged out of the way of his fist." His sneer turned to a grimace. He must have thought that I wouldn't snitch on him to the teacher. Well, tricks on you dude, I'm not beyond going to an adult to work out some problems.

"Mister Leathe, is this true? Did you attempt to hit Miss Arc here?" He didn't respond, instead he decided to look off to the side and grumble about the 'bat freak is a little snitch bitch'. "Well, since you aren't denying it, off to the principal's office with you. I'll let him decide how to deal with this. Miss Arc and Amethyst will go with you, to make sure you actually make it there. Everyone else, take out your history books and turn to page 80."

Amethyst and I flanked Roan as we walked through the empty halls of the school. It didn't take that long to get to the office, it was a small school. Amethyst knocked on the door and was answered with the principal saying, "Come on in." We entered and he looked up from some paperwork he was filling out and then he sighed when he saw who it was. "Roan, we just had a chat last week. What are you doing in here now?"

"The brat made me break my hand." I rolled my eyes and face palmed.

Amethyst spoke up. "From what we heard in class, Roan was picking on Echo and broke his hand when he missed punching her."

The shock in the principal's eyes was clear. "Is this true, Echo? Did Roan here make to punch you?"

I breathed a sigh out of my nose. "Yes, sir, it is true. Upon reaching the classroom earlier this morning, I was confronted by roan and his group of friends. After exchanging a few words, Roan picked me up by my collar and slammed me into the doorway. Shortly after, he tried to punch me in the face, but I move my head in time to avoid it and he punched the doorway instead. I told him to go to the nurse to get his hand checked out. That is the end of my interaction with him."

The principal held his head in his hands for a few seconds, obviously distressed. "Roan, you will be receiving a suspension of two weeks." Roan made to speak against the action, but the principal wasn't done. "You will also be explaining to your and Miss Arcs parents as to why you broke your hand. Go speak to Miss Iris and tell her that you need to call your parents. Miss Arc, you will stay in here with me while I call your parents. Miss Gem, you may head on back to class."

She simply nodded and left, leaving me in the office with the principal. "Sir, if I may ask you a question before we call my parents?"

"Go ahead."

"Would it be possible for me to take the graduation test so that I may focus on my Huntsman training." He looked at me for an explanation. "Yesterday, my father told me that I would be receiving training from the local Huntsmen and Huntresses so that I may become a Huntress."

"Do you feel that you're ready to take the tests? They can be pretty difficult even for those who have had enough schooling. You're years away from even taking them normally."

"Yes sir, I am aware of that fact and do believe myself to be prepared for them. I have held myself back in previous tests to ensure that I would not be placed too far ahead of my peers to lower the chance of bullying due to my age. We can see how well that has played out, with our Roan situation as it is. If I were to graduate from normal schooling, I would be free to focus on training."

"If you truly feel like you are up to the challenge, then I will not hold it from you. I will prepare the materials for you to take tomorrow. You will be taking the tests under the supervision of the high school's principal. Now, let us call your parents." He dialed the number and pressed the button for speakerphone. There were only two rings before it was picked up.

"Hello, this is the Arc household, Nicholas Arc speaking."

"Hello Mister Arc, there has been a slight incident that involves Echo. If you and your wife could come down to the school to resolve this, it would be wonderful."

"We'll be right there." The phone clicked as he disconnected.

"Now all there is left to do is wait. Would you like something to drink, perhaps some water or juice?" He offered me, moving towards a mini-fridge he had in his office.

I declined and he moved back to his desk. I sat down in a chair and made myself comfortable, placing my hands in my lap and fiddling with a belt loop. I was glad that Juniper and Nicholas hadn't made me wear skirts like the rest of the Arc girls did. Once I had expressed my dislike for them, they made sure to take me shopping to get pants, along with Jaune. He wasn't really all that tall right now, but we were expecting him any day to just shoot up due to a growth spurt, and that meant that he would really need new pants during that time.

My mind wandered around some, just hitting assorted topics while we waited for my parents to arrive. They arrived ten minutes later with grim looks on their faces, but those lifted when they saw that I was perfectly fine. "Thank you for coming here as soon as you could, Mr. and Mrs. Arc. Now all we must wait on is Mr. Leathe's parents to get here."

"Echo, did you hurt Roan? You know what we talked about last night." Nicholas looked disappointed in me.

"No, I did not hurt him. What happened, he did to himself. He tried to punch me, but I moved out of the way and he punched the doorway."

Nicholas turned to the principal. "I thought you said you would take care of the bullying?"

"And I did say I would, when it occurred where a teacher or myself could see it. Otherwise, it would just be some kids saying they were being bullied and unnecessary parent teacher conferences."

Nicholas started to seethe, but was calmed down when Juniper placed her hand on his arm. She just shook her head, it wasn't worth getting angry at the principal. He calmed down and took a seat next to me. "So how long will we have to wait?"

"Hopefully not too long now. Roan's parents were called shortly before you were." There was a slamming sound and yelling.

"Roan! Follow me, stupid boy!" The door to the office opened once again, this time by Roan's father. He was a large man, with a coarse beard and bulging muscles. He was a civilian, but working the forge for a good deal of his life made him strong.

Roan was placed in a chair on the other side of the door, and his father sat next to him. "Where is your wife, if I may ask?"

"Has to take care of the store today, since I was called in for this. But I'm more than enough to handle this." I could disagree, he was hot headed, almost as much as his son. Of course, I didn't actually say it because it wouldn't help the situation any.

"Well, just today, your son attempted to harm Miss Arc here. She moved to avoid the blow and he injured himself on the class' doorframe. I would like for him to formally apologize to Miss Arc and her family. This will be followed by a suspension from school for two weeks, and any further incidents like this may lead to expulsion."

The look on Roan's dads face steeled into a mask of rage. "Roan! Apologize to the young lady and her parents now!"

Roan looked up from the floor to look into my eyes, avoiding the looks from my parents. "I'm sorry." It was unsaid, but I knew he also meant sorry for getting caught.

"That is good enough. If you would allow Miss Iris to take care of the paperwork." With the dismissal from the principal, Roan's dad grabbed Roan by the ear and dragged him from the room. "I would also like to ask you if you would allow Echo to take the graduation tests. She brought it to my attention that she will be taking training from the village's Huntsmen soon?"

"Yes, she will be starting this afternoon, after school. And we are more than happy to allow her to try taking the tests."

"Wonderful. She will be expected to be at the high school tomorrow at normal school time to take the tests, Verd will be administering the tests. And you will not be expected to pay for any of these, as they are standard tests. Since she will be taking the tests tomorrow, I will allow her to leave school for today. If you would go with her to retrieve her belongings from her class while I contact her teacher?"

"Of course. Let's go Echo" I lifted myself from the seat and gave a slight bow to the principal, following Nicholas with Juniper behind me. As soon as we were out of normal earshot of the office, Nicholas grinned and held out his hand for a high-five. I gave him one and Juniper scoffed at our childishness. "Nice one! You didn't even have to do anything and he hurt himself. Think it's your semblance?"

I giggled and shrugged my shoulders. "I seriously doubt it was my semblance. He's just the one who threw his fist at me with enough strength to hurt himself. I only had to move. Most of the kids he picks on don't try to move when he goes to punch them. It was only a matter of time until he messed up."

"Well, it's a good thing he messed up with you and not someone else." He weathered our glares for a fraction of a second before he furthered his reasoning. "It's better that he tried to hit someone with their aura unlocked, even if he didn't know it. If he hit hard enough to break bones and he hit someone without aura, he would be expelled immediately."

"You're right, I guess, but it still doesn't mean that I want to be hit by him!" He chuckled and scratched at the back of his neck, like Jaune was starting to do. I swear, Jaune picks up too many mannerisms from Nicholas. We went by the classroom and I picked up my things, saying goodbye to the teacher in the process. She said that she would miss me and I reciprocated those feelings. I liked her, she took no shit from anybody. "So, when were my lessons scheduled to begin?"

Nicholas pulled out his scroll. "Your first one is scheduled for this afternoon at four thirty, so there's still some time before that. Is there anything you want to do before it?"

I shook my head. "No, I didn't really think of anything." I stopped to think for a moment. "Actually, I could probably knock out that project I'm working on in the shop."

"What is it anyways? I know that we got you stuff yesterday, but I still don't really know what it's for." Nicholas scratched at his head, trying to figure out what the parts were.

"It's for headphones, isn't it?" Juniper, points to you for figuring it out.

"Yeah, it's for headphones. They'll cover up my Faunus ears, sure, but the microphones I got will be placed inside the ears on top."

"So instead of bat ears, you'll have cat ears? Why?"

"Aesthetics, mostly. But also, it will function as a headlamp as well. The sensors will be placed to allow me to move the ears around based on muscle movements. It helps with noise detection and emotive expression." I was basing the headphones on ones I had gotten on Earth, the ones that had lights and speakers inside cat ear extensions on top. With the metals and technology on Remnant, I could make them to be better suited to my needs as a Huntress.

"That's a pretty good idea. You ever think about selling the design to some company? Make some money?"

"No, I want it to be my thing. If it made it to a company, then it would be widespread and used by too many people for it to be unique." He just nodded his head to this and we walked the rest of the way home in silence.

When we arrived, he and Juniper said that they would be inside if I needed anything. I thanked them and moved to the workshop, ready to start working. To start off, I moved the parts around to the rough positions they would be at on the finished product. The ears would be put together using plated metal and silent pistons that were tiny and then a cloth would be placed in the opening after the wiring was completed. A hole was made for the small, but extremely bright, focused light. The process was repeated for the other ear, and the microphones were hooked up to the wiring as the ears were attached to the headphone base.

Then began the remaking of the ear cups, so my ears could fit inside without any pinching. Then, I put in the wiring and button for the light activation. After that was done, the padding was placed on and the cups were attached to the base. I went over it with a magnifying glass to check if anything was sticking out, and filed down any metal bits that were sharp. After finishing my halfway mark inspection, I glanced at the clock and saw that it was after twelve. I put down the project and washed up for lunch, grabbing my lunch bag and a chair so I could eat outside.

It was a sunny day, with a few clouds in the sky. In Ansel, it was usually sunny, with only a few scattered storms here and there. I actually liked it when it was raining, the soothing coolness in the air and the sound of the falling rain was calming, especially when you had a nice book to read and some tea to drink. Juniper and Nicholas didn't let me drink coffee yet, saying that it would be bad for me to get used to drinking it this young. I finished off my sandwich and fruit slices, brushing the breadcrumbs that had collected on my lap off. After tossing the trash in a waste bin, I got back to the headphones.

This was the time to take it apart again to put in the sensors. First came the pads, and then some measuring and marking to where the sensors would be placed. After cutting holes out of the pads and sealing the open parts, I made sure to see that they would line up with the marks I made on the cups and the base. Then I hooked up the length of wires to the base swivels and pistons that would allow the movement of the ears up, down, and in a 180-degree motion. After that was done, I hooked up the sensors and fit them into the holes I had made while fixing them in place with a few soldering marks. Then the padding went back on, and everything I didn't want painted over was covered.

The color I had finally decided on was a light blue, to offset my pink hair. The primer layer went on and was soon dry enough for the first paint layer, then the second layer, then the sealer layer to make sure the movement gone through would not wear down the paint. I let it all dry off before taking the covers off to test the sensors, lights and microphones. The microphones worked out well enough, as well as the lights, but the sensors were slightly off. It took me about thirty minutes to finally get them just right, standing in front of a mirror to get a good look at them and myself.

I looked like a kid that had just gotten new headphones, yes, but a human kid. My forest green eyes peeked out from behind my pink curtain of hair, and I blew it out of my face. It fell right back into place. I huffed in resignation before I took the headphones off and pushed my hair back to sit below the padding. I wasn't going to cut my hair, I had decided this earlier on in this life, I was going to grow it out and put it in a ponytail or braid or something.

"Echo!" The microphones in the headset picked it out through the wall, about the same amount my ears would normally.

"Yeah, I'll be right out!" I cleaned up the rest of the mess I had made and exited the workshop, turning the light off behind me. Nicholas was waiting outside the backdoor of the house, one hand on the door and one on his scroll. "What's up?"

"We're going to be going to the school to pick up the others. Then we'll be going to the Hunter offices to drop you off for your lessons." He didn't say any more before he went inside and began speaking through his scroll once more. I simply followed and linked the headphones to my scroll for some music while we walked. Yeah, I have a scroll. It was gotten on my sixth birthday, along with Lily's scroll. Again, the arcs don't really hold back that much.

The walk to the school was short, since Nicholas walked quickly. I was thankful for this, since Fleur seemed to walk at a snail's pace so Jaune and Lily could keep up. I was a naturally fast paced walker, so the normally set pace was hell for me. Jaune and Lily were waiting outside for us when we arrived, and they waved to me in excitement. I waved back and shut off my music.

"Awesome headphones, Echo! Where'd you get them?" Lily was up in my face, her young energy overpowering.

"I made them, what d'ya think? That I got them in a shop in Ansel?" Her wonder and amazement went through the roof as she inspected the ears on them and the paintjob.

"Doesn't that hurt your real ears though?" Jaune asked as he inspected them himself.

"No, not really. I made sure to fix the ear cups to accommodate my ears easily. The pressure is put more on the sides of my head and not resting on my ears. And check this out." I swiveled the ears back and down and then pressed the button for the lights. Lily and Jaune let out renewed 'oohs' as I swiveled the ears around some more and went through their full motions.

"Yes, your sister is amazing and so is her newest toy, but we have to get going. Come on." We set off once more, this time towards the Huntsman office with two more people in our little party. When we passed by others, they said hello and complimented my new headphones, wondering where they were from. I told them the same thing every time, that I made them. I got a few tongue clicks for that in disappointment, seemed that they really liked the idea of the headphones. And this was understandable, new technology nowadays wasn't really all that common, especially in the Vale area. Most new tech came from Atlas, and was extremely expensive for someone in Ansel to get.

The Huntsman office was a large building, with attached training rooms and gym. It was the second largest building in the village, after the hospital. "Well, this is where you get dropped off. Just head up to the front desk and tell them that you're Echo Arc and you have training at four thirty. Come on, kids, let's get home and ready for dinner after homework is done."

He received disappointed grumbles from the other two as they headed off. I waved to them until they turned the corner, then I turned back to the building I was about to enter. I wasn't nervous, exactly, but there was a certain energy bouncing around in my stomach. I opened the front door and walked up to the desk situated there. "Hello."

"Yes, hello, and welcome to the Huntsman office of Ansel. How may I help you?" The person sitting at the desk had not looked up from his computer.

"My name is Echo Arc, and I have an appointment for training at four thirty." He looked up from his work and then down to me, as I was shorter than the desk.

"Ah, yes! Miss Arc, welcome! We were told of your interest by Nicholas, he's a good man. We prepared some training clothes for you in the women's locker room and then you'll have some warm up exercises for thirty minutes. Then, we'll be going through some weapons to see what you're comfortable to work with. We'll finish up with weight training and some running." He pointed to the hallway on his left, my right. "Go down this hall and the locker room will be on your left. Someone will be waiting for you once you're done changing your clothes."

"Thank you, sir." I gave a slight bow and went down the hallway, going into the obvious locker room. There was a pile of clothes on one of the benches as soon as I entered, and I divested myself of my normal clothing before putting on the new clothing. It was a dark green tank top with a pair of black breathable shorts. I decided to put the headphones back on, as I would have to get used to wearing them in practice and combat.

True to the receptionist's words, there was someone waiting for me when I exited the locker room. She was tall, and looked somewhat familiar. While I was trying to put my finger as to where I had seen her before, she was sizing me up. "So, you want to be a Huntress huh? There's going to be a decent amount of times that you're going to want to give up. You sure about this, girlie?"

Wait, that voice. "You're the one that pulled me out of the safe room!" Her shocked face was hilarious. It was the Huntress that had gotten me out of the rubble and safe room when my village had been destroyed.

"Kid, you sure that's you? The one I got out of there was a Faunus." She looked at my head and body again, looking for Faunus parts. "You don't look to be Faunus."

I took off my headphones and showed her my bat ears before putting them on again. "Yeah, I'm that one. The only survivor. Thanks for getting me out of that box, and for clearing the Grimm out. Pretty sure that I would have died if you weren't there to tell those guys to stop blasting everything."

"Kid, you're freaking me out here. That is some freaky good memory."

I laughed and tapped my head. "I have some good memory. It's like an Ursa trap though, sometimes it mangles things up. But now that we're caught up, let's get training. No use burning time that can be used otherwise for more productive activities."

She huffed and agreement and we got to the warm up activities. Normal things like pushups and sit-ups were part of it, but there were also lunges and strafe jumps. I could tell my aura was already at work with how un-winded I was by the end of everything, as I would normally be out of breath with how much we had done. She set up a training dummy next, and brought out a rack of weapons. The rack was filled with all sorts of wooden weapons ranging from knives to battle axes, as well as having more than a few practice firearms. I picked up a short sword duo, and some gauntlets. I debated on trying out the war axe, and finally decided to at least try it for now.

"Not going to try out something ranged? Most Huntsmen and Huntresses today use some range, to pick off Grimm from afar to cut down on enemies before they reach melee range." She held out a rifle towards me.

"I don't think I'll use one just yet. I don't really know how to use one effectively." She just nodded and placed the rifle back in its holding place. We trained for an hour with the weapons I had taken, and I was really starting to feel some sort of burn when we had finished. Each weapon I had tried out worked well, with the gauntlets being the best, then the swords, then the axe.

"Excellent work today. Let's finish up with the running and then the weights after. Eight laps around the track in under thirty minutes. I'll be timing you. Start now." I burst off as soon as she hit the button on the timer.

It was difficult, running eight laps in under thirty minutes. I used to be able to run four in just over thirty minutes, and I was now expected to make more than a hundred percent improvement. By the end, I was panting and very sweaty. I looked over to her and she held the timer in front of my face. It read twenty-eight minutes and thirty seconds. I collapsed and she brought me over to a bench, handing me a drink to recover some of what I had lost while running.

After a few minutes of rest, we went over to the benches with weights. She gave me two twenty pounders and told me to lift each one twenty times, alternating between left and right. The burning in my arms was real, and I dropped them when I had finished with the required amount. She gave me another minute to get the feeling back in my arms and then she set up the bar with nothing on it, since the bar itself was forty-five pounds. Then she told me to do twenty lifts of that.

On my tenth lift, my arms gave out and I dropped the bar. She rushed to catch it, but didn't stop it in time. It hit my chest, but instead of hurting me and knocking my breath out, it just stopped and felt like forty-five pounds just sitting on my chest. I felt energized again and lifted it off, finishing up the other ten lifts and placing it on the bar holder. I sat up and rubbed where it had hit me, surprised to not even see a red mark.

"I think we found out your semblance." I looked up to her, seeing if she would explain it to me. "You stopped that thing dead in its tracks and then used the energy to finish up the exercise. You sap momentum and use it as raw energy."

"Cool." I was thinking at a thousand miles a minute now. This could be useful, very useful. "Do you think it works with recoil?"

"Don't know, let's find out." We made our way back to the weapon racks after wiping down the equipment and myself, and picked out one of the heavier rifles. "Aim this down range and keep both eyes open. Only fire the round when you have the target in the middle of both sights."

I followed the instructions, keeping the bipod on the table set in front of the range. I pulled the trigger when I had both sights lined up with the target and the bullet ripped out of the gun. It was loud, but nothing else happened. The target dummy burst as the bullet demolished it. The energy I felt from the bar hitting me was back. "It totally does work against recoil! Suck it gun, I won't be bowled over by you!"

"Let's burn out that energy you just got with practice weapons and then you can leave. Don't want your dad berating me for hyping you up and sending you home." She tossed me the weapons I had used before and I burned out the energy again, and I felt more burned out than before. I guess the energy is more like a pick me up and not a rejuvenation. "Same time tomorrow for your next session."

"Thanks, have a good day!" I went to the locker room and cleaned up, then I put my other clothes back on. I ran home, determined to not slack on training even though I had just finished. I had to be strong in no time, and that meant pushing myself further than I was normally comfortable. By the time I got back home, I was sweating profusely again and could barely land myself on the couch before I crashed.

0-0-0

I woke up, with Lily screaming in my ear again. I guess Juniper must have washed me or gotten me half-awake to wash myself and put me to bed. I was sore, and it took me awhile to actually get out of bed, and even then, it was just me rolling out of bed and falling to the floor. Face first. "Oww," I grumbled into the carpet. I picked myself up and got dressed. I was starving, a consequence of me not eating dinner.

"Sleeping beauty has awoken!" Nicholas crowed when I entered the kitchen. I just shot him a glare and got my plate for breakfast, piling it twice as high with bacon and eggs while getting the normal portion of fruit. "What, I thought it was funny."

I smirked. "What I find funny is how high your voice gets when you and mumff." His hand clasped over my mouth and he gave a nervous chuckle.

"Yes, yes, hilarious. Absolutely riveting story there." I licked his hand and he snatched it from my mouth, wiping the saliva off on his shirt. "You sure you're ready to take those tests today? We can reschedule them, I'm sure of it."

"Nah, I'm ready. One could say, I was born ready." I gave them a smirk and finger guns. They looked unamused. "Fine, fine. Yes, I'm ready for them. Training yesterday was pretty good. That's why I'm tired if you couldn't tell. I'm going to train with gauntlets, two short swords, and a battle axe."

"Not a sword and shield?" His voice was quiet, almost whiny.

"No, not a sword and shield. It just doesn't seem very me right now, if you know what I mean." He just nodded sadly and went back to his meal. The others looked like they wanted to ask, but just didn't end up doing so.

After finishing up breakfast, Nicholas told the others what was happening today. Shock faces were all around when they learned I was taking the graduation test today. I was going to be walking with the others instead of Fleur, Lily and Jaune. I was wished luck before we left off and when they left me with the principal.

"Let's not waste any time. My day is busy." Verd was a cool guy, hence why I used his name rather than my regular principal's name. He was a no-nonsense character, but very fair in his judgement. He also kind of reminded me of Dr. Oobleck. He handed me the first test, Mathematics, and told me I had forty minutes to finish it. I finished it in twenty-five. Then he handed me the next portion while he went over the one I had just finished.

I continued like this until I had finished the Valean portion, what constituted as the English portion in Earth schools. "All of this is extremely well done. Let me look at this and I'll get the paperwork set up. I think you'll be the youngest person ever to graduate high school."

" _Yip-yip-hooray, no more schooling until hunter school. Will I even go to hunter school, or will I just stay here in Ansel and be a Huntress here? Things to consider, much time to think."_ I shook my head to clear it. "Well, it seems so. And sadly, I won't be here to interact with the instructors here. From what I've heard, you're all wonderful people."

He thanked me and sent me back home so he could finish up grading the tests and fill out the paper work. I ran back home, at a slower speed than yesterday to pace myself more. I would be training this afternoon, so it made no sense to tire myself out early. Upon reaching home, I threw open the door and yelled, "Guess who just became probably the youngest oldest person to graduate high school?!"

Nicholas rushed me from the side, lifting me in a hug. "You did! How were the tests?"

"Too easy." He put me back down and we high fived, then went down to a low five, hip bump with me jumping up to actually hit his hip with mine, and then fist bump ending with a pop and sizzle.

"So when should we expect the call to get your certificate?"

I shrugged, quirking my lip up. "Don't know. Mr. Verd said that he would get it done as fast as possible because he was busy today. The least I would expect is, eh, thirty minutes? Forty-five? Depends on how fast he grades and does paper work."

We waited for ten minutes next to the phone before we got bored and headed off to do stuff to keep ourselves occupied. I went to work on my weapon designs, now that I knew what my semblance was and how to work that into a weapon. I would be using all four weapon types that I had been using yesterday, maybe adding on another as a mechashift option. The gauntlets would be the first things I would work on, because they required the least amount of materials. And I decided instead of going with full gauntlets, I would go with gloves with built in knuckle dusters so I could use it as an offhand option while using a sword.

I was working on a design for that when the phone rang. It didn't ring again, which meant that the person had either hung up, or the phone had been picked up in the house. The back door slammed open and Nicholas rushed out, the phone still in his hand and the rest trailing after him. "You made it! Haha!"

"Dad, you do realize that you still have the phone in your hand, correct?" He looked down to the phone in his hand and to the cord where it connected with the rest and grimaced. "Yeah, you're going to be hurt for that."

"Nicholas!" Juniper yelled. "Get in here right now!"

He hung his head like a kicked puppy and trudged back inside, with me coming up behind him. She scolded him quickly, so as to not hold up anything, and we left out. The walk seemed shorter than usual, but that was probably because I was going at a light jog and forced Juniper and Nicholas to keep up with me. When we entered the office, Verde looked up from his computer and a large smile settled on his face.

"Congratulations, to Echo Arc, for being the youngest high school graduate at the age of seven years and two days old." He handed me the certificate and I read it. 'This person, upon the date of 08/26/26, has graduated from the high school of Ansel, in north-eastern Sanus, with the highest marks possible.' Under that was his name signed in black ink, and then my name on the top in fancy bold writing. He got a picture with me holding the certificate open, and then took a picture of me in between Nicholas and Juniper.

Today was a good day. And it showed in my training session. I pushed further than yesterday with the aid of my semblance. My body by the end was screaming at me to stop and I had to be escorted back to the house because I had tired myself out. Before I went to bed, I finished up the design for the knuckle gloves. They would be gloves that went just past the wrist that had small diamond shaped pieces of metal on the knuckles with padding underneath to help disperse the force on my body. They would allow me to hold things and fight normally, while still giving me a good option for fist fighting or offhand grappling. I went to bed tired and satisfied.

0-0-0

 _3 months later…_

The training had an obvious effect on my body already with the help of my aura. I was showing defined muscle mass and improvement in my training in bounds. I was also doing self-training with my gloves and a training sword that I used on some trees near the backyard. My swords were nearly finished, all I needed to do was get the dust channels finished and the mechashift to a satisfactory point. I was also working on a design for a battle axe, battle hammer, shield and rifle combo for my hard hitting and ranged needs.

I was brought out of training when Nicholas called out to me from the back door. "Echo, that guy I talked about a few months ago couldn't make it, so he sent someone else. His 'brother' is here to train you for today." He made the air quotes when he said brother. "Please do not piss this guy off. He will more than likely be tougher on you than your normal trainer."

"Got it, I'll try to not piss him off… Too much." He rolled his eyes at me and motioned with his hand of too much speaking. I slapped him, and he feigned being hurt. "Chuckle it up, Chocko. We'll see who's laughing when I hit you and it actually hurts. Send the guy on out while I clean the place up." I put my practice weapon on the table we had outside and cleared some wood chips that had flaked from the tree into the bushes.

Before I even saw who it was, I knew the person. The smell of alcohol drifted on the wind into my nostrils. Cheap stuff, not what I would drink if I could right now. Probably way too strong for my tastes as well. "Well, I knew it was going to be a kid, but dang, you can't be even a year older than my younger niece."

"Good to meet you too, Qrow."

0-0

 _POV shift (from here on, these will be denoted by the two zeros)_

"Your dad tell you who I was?" He asked as he took a swig from his flask.

She turned around, holding her arms across her body. "Yes, he did. He failed to mention that you would be drunk and still drinking."

Qrow held out his flask in an accusing manner. "Hey, pipsqueak, I'm not drunk yet. Might be by the end of this though, with the way you speak to me. You don't wanna call me Mr. Branwen like all the other little kiddos do?"

She scoffed derisively, kind of like Winter did. "I'll do so when you gain my real respect, and you're not drinking on the job. Especially in front of a seven-year-old girl."

"I do this all the time when I'm training the runts over at Signal." He took another swig from his flask, longer this time. "And I'm a full Huntsman, that doesn't automatically earn your respect?"

She held her face in her hands and whispered something to herself. "Qrow, it is eleven thirty-two in the morning, and you are drinking. The only two kinds of people who do that are pirates or drunks."

"Hey, I'm not one to procrastinate when life is only so long and there's no guarantee I'm going to be alive tomorrow. Pick up your weapon and get ready to show me what you got, I have to know what skill level you're at right now so I know how to train you."

She threw her hands up into the air and muttered about something that she's rather be stuck with Tai-Yang. She got into a starting stance, and was prepped for instructions. This kid was good already, like she had discipline before her training started or something. Qrow put her through a quick series of movements to see her progress. The only problem she had was when she thrusted, she threw her body too far and overextended.

"Kid, stop moving so far out when you thrust. Let the weapon do most of the moving, just keep it steady. Do it some more, right this time." The flask came up again, but he didn't take a swig of it this time just yet. He watched her as she stopped overextending in just two thrusts, and the rest after that were nearly perfect. He took a quick taste of his flask and thought to himself,

" _This kid is… different."_

 **-0-0-0-**

 **A.N. Hey guys, I'm going to put this here to test the waters. If you would like shipping to be in later chapters, please put it in the comments, even if it's just to see how badly I can flounder with writing it. This chapter was longer than the other two because it's actually more towards what I want the chapters to feel like. If you like the longer chapters please tell me, or if you like the shorter chapters tell me. And as always, constructive criticism is welcome, and reviews are happily accepted.**

 **Bowenross, signing off.**


	4. Chapter 3- Gone

Training with Qrow wasn't all that bad. Sure, he was a sarcastic asshole most of the time and drunk all the time, but he knew what he was doing. Must be why he got a teaching job, despite his constant drunkenness. He came around every three months, for three years, and then stopped because he said he had other things to take care of that were more important than training a pipsqueak. I wrote down the date in my journal, as the day when Amber became the fall maiden or when she required more vigilant protection.

Three years of training and growing showed on my person. I grew to four feet nine inches, and my skin went from the light tan look to the mocha color that my parents had. My hair was also now long enough to put into a braid. Around the second year is when we told the rest of the family that hadn't caught on yet that I was adopted. None of them really cared at this point, except for Jaune. I think it was his ten-year-old mind that just couldn't comprehend the fact that a non-blood related female had stayed in the house for so long and he hadn't hit on her. He was a regular Casanova, and by that, I mean he hit on every girl and was shot down immediately.

And speaking of Jaune, he had hit a growth spurt in the first month of eleven-years-old. He shot up to being five feet and four inches, and that was after being shorter than me. He liked to poke fun at the fact that he was taller than me now. I just told him to keep on growing so he would hit his head on doorways if he didn't duck. We had a competition of sorts, seeing who could come up with better insults. Then he started something that will come back to bite him in the ass.

It was right after Qrow stopped training me and my mornings went back to self-practice in the backyard. Before lunch, I took a shower so that I wouldn't stink up the kitchen, but Jaune completely ruined it by putting a pie in my face.

"Jaune, you just opened a can of worms on yourself. I will get you back, when you least expect it. It could be tomorrow, it could be six years from now, but I will get you. This is going down in the journal." His face paled a bit at that, and he dashed off. Things that were too important to forget went in the journal, and the reminder to prank Jaune back even got a little sticky note with a heart drawn on it as a bookmark. The entry reads, 'Put itching powder in Jaune's underwear sometime in the next six years, before he turns eighteen.'

I had also finished my swords in their final iteration. They were called Sol and Luna, and when I put them together they were called The Heavens. Instead of having a single scabbard, I had two, one on each side. Sol went on the right and Luna on the left, and I was proficient in dual wielding at this point. I was now working on getting the right materials and pieces for the battle axe that I had drawn up. Parts were not rare, per say, but they were difficult to come by in Ansel. If one of the Hunters wanted something specific, they had to order it in Vale and wait for it to be flown here.

There was also the need for serious Lien with creating mechashift weapons, and I was done leeching off Nicholas' funds for my weapons. So, I did what I thought was normal and got a job in Vale.

0-0-0

"Are you sure you want to take the job? I mean, there's no real trouble with you working in Ansel, maybe with the Hunters to guard the walls?" Nicholas and Juniper were trying to get me to stay, giving me possible options to consider.

"Nah, I'm going to need some serious Lien if I want to make my last weapon, and I just can't get that kind of money here in Ansel. I was already accepted in the workshop over in Vale anyways, so I can't really quit and work over here just because it would look bad if I didn't go to work there even though I had accepted the job." I checked my luggage again, making sure I had everything I needed before I got onto the Dust Plane.

"What about crime? It's so much worse in the city than it is here. What if something happens to you?"

"Calm down, calm down. Beacon is going to be close by and the police are there for a reason, so there's no real threat of crime where I'm going to be staying. And when we touch down in Vale, I'm not going to be sightseeing in any shady parts of town or something like that." The announcer started to call for passengers to board. "Looks like that's my cue. I love you guys, and I'll be sure to call you every now and again."

"Stay safe and work hard, kiddo." Nicholas clapped his hand on my shoulder and Juniper started crying. "Never thought that the youngest would be the third one to fly the nest, huh dear?" He received a punch to the shoulder for that. "Yeah, I know. They grow up so fast."

I boarded the plane and stowed my baggage in the compartment above me with the help of a nice gentleman that had been visiting some relatives. An attendant checked on me to make sure that I was comfortable and that I had my ticket, which I pulled from my pocket and showed her. She was a nice girl, went to school with Fleur before. She came around the house a few times, but I never caught her name. The pre-flight checks went by quickly and we were in the air within five minutes.

Luckily for me and the passengers around me, I didn't have the motion sickness that was prevalent in the Arc household. I had some motion sickness pills in my luggage just in case, but other than that, I just sat back and enjoyed the scenery outside the window. I always liked flying, because you could see large swaths of land passing by below you when you weren't above the cloud layer. And dust planes rarely went above the cloud layer because it weakened the dust in the engines.

I nodded off sometime during the flight, the next thing I know I'm being roused by the person sitting next to me telling me that we're about to land. I glanced out the window again and was met with the sight of the city of Vale in most of its glory. I could just see the docks, with ships unloading and loading large cargo containers with workers milling about like ants. Cars sped around the streets like blood in veins, and people packed the sidewalks. My first day in Vale ever looked like it would be busy.

The plane landed and we all disembarked. Some of the others had family members waiting to pick them up, and others had cars ready. I was stuck to hoofing it towards my destination, which was only a few blocks away, so it wasn't really all that bad. People barely spared me a second glance, only mildly intrigued by my headphones before they went about their day like they hadn't seen me at all. Glad to see a ten-year-old walking around by themselves didn't really garner any real attention. I reached the apartment I was going to be staying in for some time, and it was decent enough.

After entering, I walked to the front desk and rang the bell. The receptionist, a young lady named Cherry (nametags, thank you), turned from her computer. "Hello, and welcome to the Water Gate Apartments. Where are your parents little lady?"

"They're back in Ansel. I was told by Otto to come here, he said there would be a room booked for me." The look of confusion on her face stayed for a moment before she turned back to her computer.

"If I could have your name really quick?"

"Echo DeVris Arc." I stood there with my luggage while she searched my name in the database.

"Huh, so you are. Well, here's your code for your room. Just put it into your scroll and as long as you're renting the room all you have to do is hold your scroll to the door to lock and unlock it. Calling for room service incurs extra fees, and it is asked that any parties or gatherings be approved of by the general manager before they occur. Have a pleasant day!" She smiled and waved me off.

I was on the third floor, with a view of the street. It was a simple apartment, with a queen-sized bed and a connected bathroom. The living room that connected to the bedroom also had a kitchenette connected to it, with a fridge and a stove. I checked to make sure that pots and pans were in the cabinets and that the fridge was clean before I went to put my things away.

I wasn't expected to be at work until tomorrow, so today would be the day to get the lay of the land and get groceries to feed myself. I had gotten Lien by doing a few jobs here and there in Ansel, enough to tide me for a few months if I didn't splurge. My stomach growled after I put everything away, and I decided that my first line of business would be to get food. I left my apartment and locked it behind me with a wave of my scroll, swiftly descending the stairs and exiting from the front door of the complex. I scouted the street for any shops, but there weren't any in sight so I did a mental coin flip on going left or right.

It ended up being right, and I set off weaving in and around foot traffic. I made quick progress, as my diminutive stature allowed me to move through the crowds with ease. Just a few streets down there was a diner, and I ate there. They had some good pancakes and hash browns, but the eggs were over-cooked and the bacon was to crispy. I left a tip for good service though, as I normally would. Next thing to do, after I fed myself, is to find the store to pick up preparation materials for my own meals. As much as I would like to eat food prepared by others, I don't think that my money would last as long as I intended if I ate out every day.

Another short search later yielded positive results. The shop was big and clean, and the employees were friendly enough. I picked up eggs, bacon, oranges, lunch meats and bread. I was torn on getting some fish because they were having a sale on salmon, and then I decided I might as well treat myself this once since it was on sale. After loading everything onto the cashier's belt and paying, I left the store with my purchases in bags. Time to get this stuff back to the apartment and then find the workshop.

I slowed down about a block from the apartment when I heard some sort of scuffle in the alley. A quick peek in showed me some kids were picking on a wolf, or maybe dog, Faunus child. The Faunus couldn't have been older than eight, and he was a runt at that. I could already see some bruises forming on his arms as he huddled in a ball to prevent his face from being kicked. The ones bullying him didn't look familiar, but that was to be expected since I was new to Vale.

"Hey! Cut that out!" My voice bounced of the stones of the buildings and the kicking stopped. The kids looked my way and ran off down the alley. I walked over to the downed kid and placed my bags on the ground, taking him into my arms in a comforting manner. "Hey, it's alright now. They're gone."

He sobbed into my chest, and I cradled him there for a while. His sniffles died down and he looked up to me. "Thanks. Do you think you could help me find my mom? I lost her a few minutes ago."

"Yeah, come on. Let's get out of this alley first." I picked him up and gave him a quick dusting off, picking up my bags after that was done. When we exited the mouth of the alley, I closed my eyes and increased the gain on the microphones in my headset. Rotating my ears a few times, I picked up some yelling from further down the street. I put the gain back down to normal and led the kid down to where I had heard the yelling.

"Onyx, where are you baby?!" The kid's mom was standing there, yelling on the corner and scanning the crowd to spot her child.

"Ma'am, I found your child!" I held my hand up and waved to be spotted.

She pushed people aside to reach us, and she lifted Onyx in her arms. "Oh, my baby boy! Don't scare me like that again! What if something bad happened to you, what if you were kidnapped?" She took a look at him and her face darkened. "Something did happen. Where are the ones who did this to you?!"

"They ran off when I yelled at them to stop. I don't think they're anywhere nearby now, probably too scared to actually get in some sort of conflict. Not scared enough to not kick a kid though." Onyx's mom put him down and picked me up in a crushing hug.

"Thank you so much for helping my boy! Here, have this as a reward." She put me down and rummaged around in her purse, putting a few Lien in my hand.

I pushed it back into her hand. "I can't accept this. All I did was help someone who needed help, I'm not going to get payed for a simple job of scaring off bullies. And besides, we Faunus need to stick together." I lifted my headphones and showed her my ears. "Have a good day." I gave a slight bow of my head and went back to my apartment.

After putting everything up, I decided to take a rest and watch some television. I scrolled through some channels before settling on the news. White Fang protests were getting coverage, with a few of them getting violent. I made a mental note to keep my ears concealed more often now, no more casual reveals of them on the streets. I didn't want to get caught up in the White Fang mess that was picking up. By the time I was bored of watching the news, it was four in the afternoon, and I decided to make an early dinner.

The salmon came out and was spiced, placed in a pan with some olive oil and cooked up. The mouthwatering scent almost made me want to eat it right out the pan, but I knew to let it cool off and finish the carry over cooking before I dug in. I slipped the plate and utensils into the sink and ran some water over then to clean everything off before I put them in the dishwasher. I took the map I had been given on the area to find the workshop.

Otto said that it would be open till seven every day except for Sundays, and today was a Saturday. Another quick trek through the streets and I was standing in front of the store portion of the shop. I walked in and was greeted by the ringing of the bell above the door. A shout came from the door in the back, "I'll be right with ya!" I glanced around at the walls and inspected a few of the parts for sale, as well as the ammunition cases. They were priced fairly, from what I could tell based on how much it cost in Ansel for the same ammunition.

"Welcome to Otto's Parts and Pieces, how can I help ya today?" Otto was a large man, like Roan's dad, but he was more friendly looking. He was also a little larger around the belly, but that was just something that made him look more inviting.

"Hello, my name is Echo DeVris Arc. I'm to be your apprentice."

"Ah, yes, Arc. From what I remember, you're scheduled to come in tomorrow. Let me just make sure real quick." He brought up a clipboard from behind the counter. "Yeah, tomorrow at nine in the morning. What are you doing here now?"

"I figured that I would check the place out before actually starting work, to see what looked like and stuff. It's an impressive selection." He had everything I needed to make the axe, but the problem was how much it all cost. It would take me some time to get enough money for everything.

"Sounds good. Business has been slow today, so I think it would do for you to see the back. Be careful to not touch anythin' just yet, even if you do have your aura unlocked. Some of the stuff is unstable and I don't want to be sued for workplace injury just yet." He showed me to the workshop through the back door, and it was paradise to me right now. Weapon parts hung on the walls, and there was a full weapon on top of a workbench.

"I was working on this when you came in. Hunter came in yesterday saying it was lagging in its mechashift, but I can't seem to find the reason." He pressed the switch to mechashift it and the axe shifted into a one-handed shotgun.

"Shift it again?" He did so and I listened in to the shifting parts. There was a dull scraping sound near the exit of the barrel and the axe head. "There's either something stuck in the weapon, or the piston is low on pressure. It's scraping near the axe head when it shifts to melee mode."

He got out some tools to check it out and let out a chuckle. "You're right, there's this little rock chip here that clipped the piston. I have replacement pistons over there, top drawer on the right, could you fetch me one?" He pointed over his shoulder to a stack of drawers and I had to climb on a stool to reach the drawer he had pointed at. "Thanks, this should be ready for him to pick up tomorrow." He led me back out to the store front. "I look forward to working with you Miss Arc."

"Same here, Otto." We shook hands and I was on my way back out to my apartment. I spotted a guy wearing a white fang logo on the other side of the street that perked up when I exited the store. I walked on like I didn't notice him, but then he crossed the street and started to follow me about fifteen feet back. My hands went back to rest on the handles of my swords, and he backed up a few more feet. I walked past my apartment, with him still on my tail, so I decided to try to lose him by entering a corner store.

Inside the store, while out of his sight, I took off my headphones and undid my braid. Then I walked out the back door into the alley, with permission from a worker there since I told him I was being followed by some guy with a White Fang logo and I didn't know him. I slipped out of the alley and saw the guy waiting outside the store with his gaze stuck on the door. I power walked to my apartment and told Cherry not to let anyone know I was here if someone came calling for me.

After entering my room, I flopped down onto the bed and dialed the home phone. It was picked up after three rings by Nicholas. "Honey! How was your first day in Vale? Did anything big happen? How was Otto's?"

"Calm down, calm down, there's no need to ask me all this so quickly. Breathe." I heard him take and release a deep breath over the line. "To answer your questions, it was okay, nothing real big happened other than me chasing a few bullies off a kid. I met Otto just, like, thirty minutes ago. He seems nice, a good worker for sure." I wasn't going to tell him about the White Fang guy, no need to worry him with the information.

"Not even a day there and you're helping people! That's good to hear." A voice sounded in the background on his side. "Juniper tells me to remind you that she loves you and misses you already."

I smile a bit at that. "Yeah, I love her too. You as well. How were the others today?"

"They're showing that they miss you in their own ways. I'm thinking Jaune misses you the most, since you were the only one that really connected with him. Well, other than me, but I don't apparently count because I'm super old or something."

"I understand it. Being stuck in a house with eight women and only your father to talk about man stuff is hectic. I shudder to think about the day he discovers the female body, he has no privacy."

That got a guffaw from him. "Yes, I know. Juniper and I don't really have the privacy that we used to either. But with you out of the house, we have some more time to ourselves."

I cringed and shudder. "Nicholas, too much information for me. I do not need to imagine my parents getting hot and messy together. I think I'm going to turn in early tonight, tomorrow is going to be my first day of work and I don't want to be dead on my feet."

"Okay, I'll let you go now. Have a good sleep." He hung up and I laid my head down on the sheets for a few minutes before getting up to take a shower. The complimentary shampoo and bar soap were okay, but I decided that tomorrow I would go pick up some better shower items. The shower was quick, and I toweled myself off before slipping into my night clothes.

"All in all, not a dreadful day. Let's get better days though." I went around flipping lights off and slid into bed, turning off the bedside lamp last. With my muscles relaxed from the shower and the exhaustion from everything else, I fell asleep quickly.

0-0

 _Somewhere nearby…_

The White Fang member that had been following Echo knocked on a door to a run-down building in the dock areas. "Password?"

"Infinity Tail."

The door opened to let the member in, and he slid inside before the door closed behind him. He made his way past rooms that were occupied by Faunus sitting around low tables. Another door at the end of the hall was opened for him and he entered. A burly Faunus sitting at the table stood up and made his way over to the member. "It is good to see you; do you have news regarding the one I asked you to follow?"

"She knew I was following her and gave me the slip at a corner store. I don't think she's interested in joining the White Fang."

The burly Faunus nodded his head and rubbed his jaw. "That's too bad, we could use some more fighters to help in our rallies. I'll send word out to the others to keep an eye on her if they see her, but now to follow her. There's no need to stalk a little girl uninterested in The Fang." He scratched the wolf ears on his head. "That is all."

The member nodded his head and left, and the burly Faunus went back to his planning. _"This girl_ _is a wildcard. Her hands went to her weapons, I don't really want to see her again. I just hope Bane knows what he's doing…"_

0-0-0

Years went by, working for Otto in that shop, and I gathered enough money to build my battle axe, hammer, rifle, shield. I named it Jolder, a fitting name I believe. The dust channels were on one side and they looked like a tree with sprouting leaves. The shield straps could retract into the head with a touch of my hand, and the barrel handle was telescoping with reinforced sides so it didn't bend while I swung it around in hammer or axe form. The magazines fit into the receiver in the head, so I had to carry them around in holders on my lower back when I wasn't using the rifle form. It had a flat top and straight blades that had a slight flat bottom that then curved deeply towards the handle.

I called home every month or so to keep everyone posted on how I was doing, and when I got a break from work, I took a Dust Plane back to catch up with everyone in person. The twins had opened a detective shop in Ansel, which was more like just them finding lost items and such, but it was still work. Lily was doing well in school, and Jaune was just about done with his school year. He looked like he was debating something the last time I visited, like he wanted to speak with me about something but he never worked up the courage to do it.

I was back in my room now, in a rented house, as I had moved out of the apartments I had started out in. Work was good at Otto's right now, and I was about to head out to pick up a shipment of fire Dust that he needed for ammo. While he could take in smaller shipments of Dust, larger orders had to come from the shops around the area. I dressed in my new combat wear, because casual wear nowadays was overrated.

Jeans with light blue combat boots, fitted with weight dispersal tech that I had rigged up a few months ago. I could step as light as a feather with these suckers. A sports bra held up my now decently sized mammary glands (I refuse to call them breasts on me), and a pink tank top with harnesses for my weapons went on top. My now waist length hair went into a braid and then put into a bun and my headphones were put on. With the radicalization of the White Fang, Faunus were given more than two glances now, especially if they had weapons.

The gloves went on, tightened and now specially reinforced as they had grown with me. Then came the sword in their scabbards. And finally, the axe, in its shield form, placed on my back. I looked in the mirror at myself and stood at my full height of five feet and five inches, and then gave myself finger guns. "Looking good there, Echo, like a true badass." I left my house, locking it manually behind me. The streets at night were nearly as busy as they were during the day, but as I closed in on the Dust shop I was picking up the shipment from, traffic died down to just a few people every now and again.

I entered the store and the bell rang, signaling my entrance. "Hey geezer, I came for the shipment." He just nodded and pointed towards the back of the store, the shipment was ready for pickup. "I'm just gonna stay here and look through your stuff real quick. You got the latest weapon and Dust mags?" He nodded and pointed to the magazine racks. "Thanks."

We got Dust from him every now and again, and he wasn't a real talker. Mostly just grunts and nods, with a few hums every now and again. He was my go to for raw Dust when I need to stock up for my weapons, mostly because of how much Otto bought from him showed that he was trustworthy. While I was flicking though a few pages of the Dust mag I was reading, the bell rang again. I didn't really pay attention to who it was until they asked the geezer if the latest weapon mag was in. I glanced over and grimaced when I was met with the sight of a red hood.

The little red reaper herself was standing beside me, in From Dust Till Dawn. Reading a new weapon magazine with her headphones blasting Casey Williams. I turned on my own music, making it seem like I wouldn't hear anything else going on in the shop. We were both standing there for about five minutes before the bell rang again, and in came Roman Torchwick.

"Finally! Do you know how difficult it is nowadays to find Dust shops open this late? Pretty difficult! And that makes my job all the more difficult." He pointed his cane at the shop owner, which I saw just out of the corner of my eye.

"Take all the money that you want, just don't hurt me." The most words I had heard out of him in one sentence at this point.

Roman laughed, his head tilting back. "No, we don't want the money. Give us the dust." The thugs that had followed in after him began pulling cases up and opening them, taking out containers and sticking them in the dust dispensers. He spotted Ruby and I, and nodded his head over at us to a thug with his gun out. Good, he hadn't noticed I saw them.

"'Ey, hands up and turn around." I acted like I hadn't heard him while Ruby straight up didn't. "'Ey! I said, hands up!" This time he bumped our shoulders to get our attention.

Ruby turned around, glancing at me and then the thug. He pointed at his ears, indicating he wanted her to take her headphones off. She did so, and glanced at me again. I just shrugged and went back to my magazine. "Are you… robbing us?"

"Yes. Get your friend to turn around and put her hands up, or I shoot the both of you." He motioned with his gun towards me.

I just grunted and put the magazine back on the rack, making sure it went back in the exact same spot I had found it in. I spun around and socked the guy in the jaw, sending him spinning through the front window into the street. I followed after his limp body and Ruby came soon after. The rest of the thugs rushed out when they heard the crash. They just stood there with dumb looks on their faces until Roman motioned towards us with his cane. "Well? Get them, you idiots!"

Ruby had deployed her scythe and got to work on the guys with their guns out while I engaged in the close-range combat. One swung at me from my right, coming in towards my shoulder and I ducked into the swing and the blade nearly hit me. I grabbed him by the arm and used the momentum to throw him into two others that were coming from the left side. With them dispatched, I heard Ruby engaged in battle with Roman and I picked up one of the axes from the ground and chucked it at him. He leaned back and dodged it, but made a tsk noise with his tongue.

"As much as I would love to continue this babysitting, I must go." He lifted his cane and the end swung up to show a crosshair. The Dust round came out quickly and Ruby and I dodged different ways, with the round exploding on the asphalt somewhere behind us. When we looked back to where Roman had been, he was gone. A survey of the area, and we found him climbing a ladder on one of the nearby buildings.

"Geezer, you going to be alright here by yourself?" He nodded and grunted. "Come on, red, after him!" We got up there as fast as we could, Ruby climbing the ladder and me using some juice of my semblance to enhance a jump. Ruby popped off a shot that missed him narrowly, impacting the side of the Bullhead he was stepping into instead.

"You kids are damn persistent!" He grabbed a fire dust crystal from his pocket and tossed it towards us, lifting his cane to take aim at us.

I grabbed the axe shield and positioned myself in front of Ruby, tanking most of the blast while the rest bled off to the sides. When we looked back up, the bullhead was beginning to fly off. I switched the axe into its 20mm rifle mode and fitted in a mag, and then began popping off rounds while using my semblance to keep myself rooted. The problem with my rifle is that I have to hip fire it, since there is no way to hold it up to my shoulder comfortably, and I still hadn't gotten much time in the range to practice with it.

The Bullhead was beginning to turn around, the other door sliding open. I caught a glimpse of a red and gold dress before it lit up. I shifted my axe back to the shield and hunkered down, ready for the barrage of fire. It was blocked by pieces of roof left over from the explosion Roman caused. The rest of the pieces that hadn't been destroyed were shot up at the Bullhead, but those were destroyed as they came. The door slid back and the Bullhead flew off quickly, leaving Ruby and I on the rooftop with Goodwitch.

"Oh my gosh! That was awesome! And a real huntress! Can I get your autograph?" Ruby was all up in Goodwitch's face. She just raised an eyebrow at me and I gave a half shrug and a shake of my head before dropping my shoulders.

"Both of you will follow me. No speaking." She stalked off and dropped to the ground. We followed her, dropping off the building as well. The thugs that we had taken out were being shoved into a police vehicle, and they grumbled obscenities to the cops before they were cuffed over the head and the door was shut. Ruby and I were ushered into a dark vehicle while Goodwitch slid into the passenger seat. We took off at a quick speed, and the streets of Vale blurred through the window.

The ride was quiet, well, other than the squealing of Ruby sitting next to me and the tapping we heard from Goodwitch's scroll. We reached the Vale Police Station and were shown to an interrogation room, and the door shut behind us. Goodwitch sat us down on the other side of the table from her, and I squirmed at how uncomfortable the seat was. It was like I sat on a bar of steel that had just cooled. Very solid and very rough.

Goodwitch pulled out a tablet and faced it towards us. It showed us the camera footage from earlier, how I had punched the thug through the glass and the whole fight outside. "I hope you both realize that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, at all. You put yourselves and others at great risk by pulling off this stunt!"

Ruby spoke up, putting both hands on the table and leaning forward. "But they started it!"

"It doesn't matter who started it. You should realize in those kinds of situations just how many people are involved, not just the enemy. But if it were up to me, you would be sent home with a pat on the back," Ruby perked up, "and a slap on the wrist!" Goodwitch slammed her riding crop onto the table and Ruby scooted back in her chair. "Sadly, it is not up to me." She moved back to the door. "There is… someone who wishes to meet you two."

The door opened and in walked Ozpin, with a tray of cookies in his offhand and a mug of coffee in his main hand. His cane was strapped to his side. He set the tray down and sat on his own chair, Goodwitch standing behind him. He stared at Ruby for a few seconds. "You have silver eyes." Ruby looked perplexed at this, like 'What does that even have to do with this situation right now?'. Ozpin took the tablet from Goodwitch and rewound it to the point where Ruby had gotten to melee combat. By this point, Ruby had stuffed all the cookies in her mouth and was attempting to chew them and not choke. "Where did you learn to do this?"

A mess of garbled words and crumbs came out in response and I cringed as some of them hit me. She swallowed and spoke again. "Signal academy?"

Ozpin took a look at the footage again and stopped it when it showed Ruby pulling off a difficult move. "And they teach those in training to use one of the most dangerous weapons out there?"

Ruby looked nervous and rubbed her feet and hands together. (Hands and feet separately, of course) "Well, one teacher in particular…"

"The only teacher I know to be able to teach to this level with a scythe is a dusty old crow…"

Ruby perked up again. "That's my uncle Qrow! He's super cool! Before he took me under his wing, I was total _garbage_ , but now I'm all like Hoowaa! Witchaa!" She made karate motions with her hands.

"And what is an adorable girl like you doing at a school like Signal?" He sipped from his mug. The smell of coffee wafted over to me. Note to self, stock back up on coffee beans, you only have enough for one more brewing at home.

"I want to be a Huntress." She looked down at her hands, wringing them together.

"You want to go out and slay Grimm? Help people?"

"Yeah! I only have two more years of training left at Signal! And then I'm going to apply to Beacon! You see, my sister's starting there this year, and she's trying to become a Huntress, and I'm trying to become a Huntress 'cause I wanna help people. My parents always taught us to help others, so I thought, hey, I might as well make a career out of it!" She giggled at the thought. "I mean the police are alright, but Huntsmen and Huntresses are just so much more romantic and exciting and cool and really, **gosh** , you know!?"

I took an earpiece of my headphones away from my ear and rubbed at it, trying to get my hearing back. Ozpin turned towards me. "And you, Miss, you've been awfully quiet during this exchange. What is your story?"

I put my earpiece back on and sat straighter. "I am In Vale currently working as an apprentice to Otto in his shop. I was out to collect a shipment of dust that we need to fill out some orders when we were confronted by Torchwick and his men. I sought to bring the fight outside so that the shopkeeper was not brought into the fight, and Miss Rose here followed. After dispatching of the men in red and black suits that belong to the Red Axe Gang, we confronted Torchwick. Of course, he fled to the roof, and the rest is known firsthand by Miss Goodwitch."

Ozpin just rose an eyebrow and took another sip of his brew. "Not quite what I was asking for. What is it that made you want to be a Huntress, and where did you train? The tactics you used do not seem familiar to me, but they were effective nonetheless."

"I wanted to be a huntress to help people, defend those who cannot defend themselves. To remove threats that may harm more than just a few. And as for where I trained, I grew up in Ansel and was trained there from the age of seven to the age of ten. When I was ten, I came here to work for Otto in his shop, and that is where I made Jolder, my battle axe."

"Your battle axe?" I glanced towards Goodwitch and she nodded, so I slung the axe off my back from over my shoulder and extended the handle. The head stayed the same as when it was in shield mode but the straps retracted into it. And the reason why it hadn't been this was before was because I had to switch it to its hammer mode tow use the rifle. "Ah, I see. A fitting name for such a weapon. And you made it yourself, with no aid from anyone?"

"Yes, I made it by myself, with my own funds. I also created my swords Sol and Luna along with these gloves and the headphones that I'm currently wearing. The headphones and gloves were made when I was seven. I took training under the Huntsmen and Huntresses in the village, and every now and again Qrow would come to train me."

"WAIT!" Another shout in my ear, another attempt to gain my hearing back. "You know my uncle Qrow!? He trained you?"

"Yes, and yes. He spoke of you and your sister occasionally." I turned back to Ozpin. "Does that satisfy your need for knowledge?"

"One more thing. It says you graduated from a civilian's high school when you were seven, the earliest anyone has ever graduated from primary schooling. Is this true, and if it is, did you cheat to get the results you did?"

"It is very much true, and I did not cheat to achieve those scores." I looked him in the eye, daring him to challenge me.

He looked down and placed the tablet on the table. "Do you two know who I am?"

Ruby beat me to the punch. "You're Ozpin, the headmaster at Beacon."

He held up his mug and smiled. "Yes, hello."

"Nice to meet you." Ruby said, rocking in her chair.

"How would you two like to come to my school?"

Ruby shot forward, the chair clattering to the floor. "WOULD I!? More than anything!"

I cracked my neck. "Is there some sort of catch, some fine print we need to read into? Initiation is in a week, no way you can fit us in in that short a time."

"There is no catch. And believe me, I can fit you two in in that time." He sipped from his mug again. "So?"

I ran the possibilities through my mind, the possible butterfly effects, and sighed. "I accept. I will have to tell Otto about this."

"Do not worry about that, Miss Arc." Glynda showed me her scroll. "I have already informed your employer that you will be leaving his employ to go to Beacon. If there are no more questions, we will allow you to leave now and get ready for initiation. Your passes will be sent to your scrolls, please make sure that you are at the Vale Air Harbor at the appointed time to get on a Bullhead for Beacon."

She didn't really give us a chance to ask questions before she ushered us out of the station and shut the door, most likely to go deal with the paperwork that would be required for the criminals we _had_ taken care of. Ruby turned to me and held out her hand. "So, I never really got your name, other than Arc. My name is Ruby Rose, and it's a pleasure to meet you!"

I met her hand with mine, giving a firm shake. "Echo DeVris Arc. If you ever meet my brother, don't make any indication you know me."

"Okay?" She retracted her hand from mine slowly. "So, wanna go get some ice cream or something?"

I checked my wallet, to check how much cash I had, and shrugged. "Sure, I know this pretty _cool_ place on Third West that sells some _sweet_ treats."

Ruby face palmed. "Oh no, not another one." She looked up to the sky. "Why would you do this to me? Isn't one enough already?!" When she realized I had stopped walking to stare at her, she lit up like a Christmas tree. "Ehehe, sorry about that. It's just that Yang already makes way too many puns. You're pretty different than you were in there. What's up with that?"

"Simple efficiency. If I do not need to dice words or add in some extra flavoring, then that is what I'll do. There are times when being serious can get you kudos with others." I took my scroll out and showed her a picture of Weiss I pulled up. "Like someone from Atlas. They hold high priority on militaristic behavior in seriousness and efficiency. They will add flowery words at times, but only to be obscure."

"But why would someone try to be obscure when talking? It makes sense to be up-front with everything so nobody gets hurt by secrets."

"Politics, Ruby. And there are secrets that can hurt people simply by existing, no need to tell anyone about them. And are you saying that even you don't have secrets you want to stay hidden?"

She made a zipping motion on her mouth. I chuckled and ruffled her hair. "Hey, before we get there, do you think we could go get my sister? I should tell her the good news! And she has the money."

"You went into a Dust shop without any money? You know what, never mind, sure let's go get your sister. Lead on." I let her take the lead, and she led us to the Water Gate Apartments. Turns out, they got put in the room I used to use. Ruby left me downstairs while she went to get Yang. "Hey Cherry, how's life treating you?"

She made a so-so motion with her hand. "It's not terrible, but it could be worse. I'm still hoping to get a raise; the bills are starting to stack up."

I winced. "Yeah, that sucks. I'll try to put in a good word to the manager for you."

Ruby stopped further conversation by coming down with Yang in tow. "Echo, this is Yang. Yang this is Echo. She has asked me to not tell her brother, if we ever meet him, that we know her."

Yang shot a questioning look at Ruby before holding her hand out for a shake. "Pleasure to meet you, Yang. Qrow told me how you like puns."

A spark lit in her eye. "And it looks like we're already going to be the best of friends. So, tell me, how did you meet my lil sis?" She grabbed Ruby in a headlock and gave her a noogie.

"We stopped a well-known criminal from robbing a Dust store and then Ozpin asked us to come to Beacon." I said in a nonchalant way, looking at my nails.

She put her arms under Ruby's armpits. "Oh my gosh! My little sister got into Beacon two years early! And she already made a friend! This is awesome!" She began to crush Ruby in a bearhug.

"Yang… need… air." She was dropped and gulped in lungsful of air. "Anyways, we were going to go get some ice cream to celebrate our acceptance to Beacon! And I wanted you to come as well."

"Sounds _sweet_ , let's go get some _cool_ treats." She gave that lopsided smile and made her finger guns.

"Sorry, already made those puns when we were coming over here. We might as well head on over now, since they won't be open much longer." She deflated and followed me, with Ruby bringing up the rear. "So, have any _tasty scoops_ about anything that's happened lately?"

Ruby groaned and Yang beamed. She went on about how she had gotten into a bar fight earlier this week, in great detail. About the massive amounts of property damage she and the opponents made. She didn't go into why she was at the bar to begin with, but I knew. Her story lasted us all the way to the ice cream shop, and Ruby picked up some cookie dough, Yang got mango and strawberry sorbet while I got raspberry sorbet. We ate in silence, with Ruby occasionally taking bites out of it and then complaining about brain freeze

When we finished we just walked the streets, talking about whatever came up. Yang was surprised to learn that I had made all three of my weapons, and she was even more excited when I told her that I also fought hand-to-hand. She made me promise to have a boxing match with her some time, and I agreed to try. I didn't tell them my semblance, and there was no way they would guess it right now. Ruby was probably the closest to figuring it out, but she wasn't making any guesses.

We parted ways and I headed back home to pack my things away in preparation for moving to the dorms. When I was about halfway through the stuff I would be taking, I got a call on my scroll. I grabbed it from my pocket and answered without looking at who was calling. "Hello, Echo Arc speaking."

"Echo, Jaune is gone."


	5. Chapter 4- Amber

**Reviewer Acknowledgements and A.N.**

 **Jordanmlongbruh- Thank you very much! And it is amigo. I look forward to writing more for you and all the wonderful people.**

 **M- Thank you for telling me that you like longer chapters. I'll try to keep them long, but sometimes I just can't keep it above 8k words, like the first two chapters.**

0-0-0

"What do you mean he's gone?" I got comfortable in the recliner, ready to listen to Nicholas.

He sounded agitated. "I mean, he's gone! We didn't even know about it until we told him to come down for dinner and Lily went up to get him since he wasn't coming down. He wasn't in his room, and we searched the village and asked everyone if they had seen him. He just up and disappeared, and get this, he took Crocea Mors and my old armor with him."

I tried to placate him. "Dad, calm down, being angry is going to get you nowhere. As a Huntsman, you know this." He muttered something I didn't quite hear. "And it's not like Jaune is stupid enough to go out there and fight Grimm without his aura unlocked, or even training. As much as he idolizes your teachings of confidence, he knows that it will do nothing in a fight against the Grimm."

He sighed and I heard the scratch of him running his nails through his beard. "You're right. But still, he didn't even leave a note! What if something happens to him, we don't even know where he is!"

I rolled my eyes and leaned back further. "Again, Jaune is a pretty smart cookie, dad. He won't get into anything stupid. He's, what like six one now or something? And he's wearing armor and carrying around a sword. Even if he may not know how to use it, those things usually deter people from trying to mess with you. Trust me, I know."

There was silence for a few moments, and then he spoke in a suspicious voice, "Is there something you weren't telling your mother or me?"

"Yeah, when I first got here and helped that kid, the White Fang followed me for a bit." He started to cough, shocked into a state where he had messed up his breathing. "It only lasted for a few months, nothing really worth writing home over. And I have good news!"

"Good news? What, did you stop a criminal ring or something?" He scoffed.

"Kind of? I helped stop Roman Torchwick from robbing this place where Otto gets Dust deliveries from. Then this whole conversation went down with Headmaster Ozpin and Goodwitch, and I'll be attending Beacon in about a week." I paused. "That is, if I pass initiation."

He sat there, quiet for such a long time I thought he had stopped breathing. Then he yelled, "HAHA, my daughter got into Beacon! AND WE, ARE THE CHAMPIONS!" I tuned him out, knowing this would go on for some time before he finally got it out of his system. After he finished he cleared his throat, "Ah, yes, well congratulations! I knew you could do it, and to be accepted a full year early by their standards! Truly the Arc prodigy that we raised. Didi you hear Juniper, our baby girl is going to Beacon!"

"Yes, I heard you! I'm pretty sure the entire village heard you. Did Echo say anything about Jaune? Does she know where he is?" Silence again. "You got distracted, didn't you?" A brief confirmation and then a smacking noise came over the scroll. "Echo, have you seen or heard from Jaune at all since this morning?"

"No mom, I have not. But, as I was telling Dad, he's got a good head on his shoulders and he will most likely not get into trouble. Besides, he's seventeen now, he was going to leave the house eventually. I'm sure when he's ready to talk to you guys or the family again, he'll contact us. If I end up seeing him before he does this, I'll be sure to talk to him."

"Thank you, Echo. That helps. I think. We should let you get ready, it sounds like you have much to so to get ready. Come, Nicholas, I'll let you tell the others in person that Echo got into Beacon." A scrambling noise was heard in the background before a door slammed open, signaling Nicholas running out of the house to tell everyone the good news. "Love you, Echo. I have to go somewhat control your father."

"Love you to, mum. Have a good night." I hung up and finished packing, running through events in my head. Jaune leaving a week before the initiation ceremony meant that he was most likely in Vale right now to get his forged papers. That also meant that if I went anywhere, I had a chance of running into him, or I could run into him on the Bullhead ride to Beacon. I took stock of my remaining food and drinks, and decided that I would be able to deal with a week being cooped up in the house.

I just had to get coffee.

0-0-0

It was weird being outside again, after cooping myself inside for a week. It might be my bat Faunus side coming out, but I don't quite remember the sun being that bright or hot. I was carrying everything I needed in a luggage bag, except for the clothes I was currently wearing (of course) and my weapons. The Air Harbor was packed with hopeful Hunters and Huntresses in training, but I could make out a few people easily.

Pyrrha Nikos, the tall Mistralian was surrounded by fans and people wanting to team up with her. She looked uncomfortable as she held her hands slightly away from her body and put on a still smile. There were people asking for her autograph, and some were wanting to take pictures with her. I'm sure there were also a few in there that had asked her to go out with them, because her smile became slightly tauter every now and again when those boys would go by her.

There was also Weiss, the Ice Queen, and her future title fit her well. She was given a wide berth, as her attendees shooed others away from her and her luggage. It would make sense that they would want to keep people away from the cases on the trolley, as they were filled with highly volatile Dust, but there was no need to keep them away from her. They were to be her classmates and possible teammates for the next four years, not people that would never be fit to interact with her.

A bright orange head of hair was situated above the heads of everyone as Nora rode on Ren's shoulders, the poor boy looking like he needed more sleep. They were given their own berth, but not nearly as wide as the one Weiss got. I personally thought it was because Nora threatened anyone with broken legs if they bothered her perch, while the attendees promised something much worse to those who approached Weiss.

Ruby and Yang were there, of course, with Yang being the one I picked out of the crowd first. Ruby was busy clinging to her sister's side, trying to get out of socializing with everyone. And when I found Yang, I also found Jaune not that far off. I had been scanning the crowd for blond hair, and not many people actually had it. He was standing off towards the back, looking apprehensive about life, or maybe just the Bullhead ride. I don't quite honestly know.

The last person of the main crew I found was Blake. She kind of just blended in with the crowds, even with her darker colors against all the colorful uniforms here. It might just be her nature of hiding that let her blend in easily with the crowd. She got on the first Bullhead to Beacon, and the rest just followed shortly. I went on my own Bullhead, apart from everyone else that I knew.

I never really got a good view of Vale from the sky before now. The residential district looked strange from the air, with the towering apartment complexes contrasting the smaller houses and other such living arrangements. Alleys and streets melded together to form a kind of veiny pattern, looking almost like a grey leaf carved from the vey ground. The greenery looked like moss or algae, as it just dotted the grey every now and again.

A minute away from Beacon, we were alerted by Goodwitch that we would be landing and that we were to make our way to the main entrance hall. Sounds easy enough, just head forwards from the place we land and go in big doors. Even a simpleton could figure it out. The I remembered that Jaune and Ruby had gotten lost in the original timeline and I groaned. Maybe leaving Jaune to his own devices would lead to a great disaster that I could never undo. Or it could just lead to them almost being late, I just like being melodramatic sometimes.

Touchdown was soft and we disembarked, a few people marveling at the size of the school. I had seen it plenty of times from down below the cliff, so it wasn't nearly as impressive as the others found it. I hastily made my way towards the assembly, not wanting to be stuck in the back where Jaune could see me. And I just really didn't want to be surrounded by dudes, females were alright. They wouldn't try to flirt with me.

The hall filled up slowly, and thankfully I wasn't surrounded by dudes. I wasn't really surrounded at all, but it meant more to me that there weren't guys all around me in close proximity. It was getting to the last minute before the doors closed and I saw Jaune and Ruby jog in. Yang called out to Ruby and she left Jaune all alone there, and he kicked at the ground before walking to find a place to stand where he could see the stage. Pyrrha was watching him as he walked away with a small glint in her eyes.

There was a tapping on the mic and my head snapped to the stage. "I'm going to keep this brief." Ozpin was standing there, as normal looking as ever with his coffee mug and cane. "There are many reasons why humans and Faunus want to become Hunters and Huntresses. Money, power, fame, to protect others. I look around at all of you prospective Hunters and Huntresses in training and all I see wasted potential." Pained mutterings came from the gathered students at that. "That is all."

Goodwitch stepped up to the mic. "Initiation will begin tomorrow at o-nine-hundred. You will be sleeping in Beacon's ballroom tonight. You are all young adults now and I hope you will restrain yourselves. If not, you will not even get the chance at initiation tomorrow. You are dismissed." She strutted off the stage after Ozpin, and everyone started to move to the locker rooms. Directions had been sent to our scrolls as soon as the speech had ended, along with our locker numbers and codes.

I found my locker easily, number three-four-three and entered the code. The door swung open quietly and I divested myself of my weapons and my combat clothes as I put on my sleep wear. Dark blue flannel pants and a pink t-shirt. After grabbing my sleeping bag and my pillow, I shut the locker and tried the code again, just to make sure I had it down. The door opened once again and I shut it before walking to the ballroom.

When I entered, I scanned for a place to set up my sleeping bag, somewhere out of sight and out of mind. Sadly, most of the walls had been occupied, and the only one that hadn't been completely filled was the one Blake was resting against while reading her book. Just as I was about to give up and just plop myself somewhere in the middle of the floor, a gasp rang in my ears. I wasn't wearing my headphones, so whoever did it must be freaking blind or just plain rude.

"Oh my gosh, you're a pinkie too!" The bubbly girl that had just temporarily deafened me said to me. "My name's Nora Valkyrie and this is my bestest friend in the whole wide world Ren!" Ren, in response to Nora saying his name, just gave me a slight smile that said to just roll with it. "We've been together since forever, but not together-together. So, what's your name?"

After finally recovering from the deafening, I held my hand out to her. "Hello, Nora, my name is Echo DeVris Arc. But, my friends just call me Echo. And hello to you, Ren. I assume that you have another name?"

Quietly, he said, "Lie Ren. Nice to meet you."

Nora was busy shaking my hand, and I had to use my semblance to make sure she didn't just lift me from my feet. "So, now that we found another pinkie, we have to officially form the Pink Brigade! Tell me, do you know how to imitate a sloth noise? Or maybe you can make a cute bat noise, that'll work too!"

Ren smacked his forehead. "Nora, that is extremely insensitive to say to her."

"Why? I don't really see why it would…" She trailed off when she realized what Ren was now pointing at. "Oh my gosh, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to be so mean to you. Will you still be this meanie's friend?" She gave me some puppy dog eyes.

I reached out and ruffled her hair. "Yeah, I know you didn't mean anything by it. We're still friends Nora, just be more careful next time. The next Faunus might not be so understanding as I am."

"Okie dokie, artichokey!" She gave a salute and then pulled Ren and I to a spot she had scouted out earlier, most likely while she was talking to me.

Ren poked me and whispered, "Thank you for that. Sometimes, Nora doesn't know the meaning of subtlety or political correctness."

I waved his thanks off. "It's no problem. She's nowhere near as bad as those who actually taunt Faunus for their heritage, or who hurt us for it. She looks to be a good friend. I look forward to learning more about you two in the coming years. Heck, we might even end up on the same team." I rolled out my bad and dropped my pillow, speaking to the both of them now. "I have been cooped up in my house for a week and now I'm pretty tired, so I think I'll be going to sleep now. If one of you would wake me up, that would be greatly appreciated.

Nora smiled and nodded, her hair flinging forth wildly, and Ren gave a single nod. I laid in the bag and zipped it up, then placed my head on the pillow. Yang was right, this was just like a big sleepover…

0-0-0

I woke to Nora poking my boob (crap, I just called it a boob when I refrained from doing so for so dang long) and quietly saying in my face "Boob! Boob! Boob!" When she saw that I was awake, she moved over to Ren and poked at his nose that she had been poking at me with and now started saying, "Boop! Boop! Boop!"

I got up from my place on the floor and stretched, looking around while doing so. It seemed that most everybody was still asleep. I picked up my stuff and left the room as quietly as possible, with Ren and Nora quietly following behind me. After deciding to put our stuff in our lockers and getting dressed in our combat uniforms, we made our way to the cafeteria for breakfast.

Ren had gotten a plate with grilled fish and rice, with a hardboiled egg and some black tea to drink. Nora had grabbed as many pancakes as the person behind the counter allowed, which was admittedly way too many. She got three glasses of milk to wash everything down. They didn't have any bacon or god scrambled eggs, so instead I got a few sausage patties and links with half of my plate being filled with mandarin orange slices in light fruit syrup. I also got a cup of black coffee, my caffeine addiction is no laughing matter.

Breakfast conversation was mainly Nora speaking about dreams she's had previously, with Ren and I nodding and 'uh-huh'-ing occasionally to keep her going. After finishing and bringing the dirty trays and utensils back to the dishwasher belt, we went to clean up and prep for initiation. I parted from them, wishing them luck, and they wished me luck in return. Nora said that if she didn't get Ren as a partner, then she would gladly take me as a close second. When I went to grab my weapons, I noticed that there was also a signal flare amongst my items. I tucked that into my ammo belt.

Instead of sticking around, I decided to make my way to the cliffs to I could pick out my launchpad. I was about halfway there when Goodwitch announced that we were to head to the cliffs for initiation. I sped up, not wanting to be passed by anyone. My speed was rewarded when I was the first one to the pads, and I stepped on one somewhat close to Ozpin and Goodwitch.

He simply raised his mug in greeting and Goodwitch readjusted her glasses on her nose. I nodded to be polite and then focused on the objective at hand, feeling at the object in my pocket to ensure it was still there. I had created a golden, or white, rook piece in case the person I got paired with decided to grab another piece. Nora and Ren, or Jaune and Pyrrha, those were necessary teammates for future plans. After all the platforms had been filled, with Jaune still not realizing I was here, Ozpin spoke up.

"Good morning, this will be brief." He waved to the forest ahead of us with his cane. "In front of you is the Emerald Forest, it is teeming with Grimm. There are some ruins in the northern forest, and I have placed relics there that you are to retrieve and bring back. Be quick and efficient, kill everything in your way or you will **die.** " A few dry throats were wetted at that comment, and eight just decided to give up by stepping off their platforms and heading back towards the school.

Glynda stepped forward. "I'm sure you have all heard the possibilities of how teams are formed, and how partners are picked. Let me tell you that you will be getting both, today." A whine from Ruby down the line. "The first person you make eye contact with upon landing will be your partner for the next four years." An even louder whine. "And due to **someone's** … planning error, there will be a group of three partners. I'm sure that most of you saw the flares in your lockers?"

Some of the people in the line nodded, while still looking confused. "How many of you are carrying the flares with you now?" Only I and one other person held our hands up. "You two will have the possibility of becoming the third partner. If you see the other flare, it means that you will have to find a single partner as the other person has already formed the three-person pair. Now, prepare your landing strategy."

A hand went up next to Ruby, Jaune trying to get one of the two instructor's attentions. "Uh, excuse me." The first pad went off, sending a person hurtling into the forest. I didn't get to hear the rest of his talk, because the pad I was on launched me. It was easy to stabilize my flight, simply spreading my limbs out gave me enough surface area to flatten out and not spin. I spotted Ren and Nora landing nearby, so I made a note of where they had landed. Landing was simple, I just used my semblance to absorb my momentum upon hitting the forest floor, and I used it to speed off to where I had seen Ren land.

I saw the tree he had used to slow his descent and followed the footprints in the leaves he left. Despite the low light in the area, I was able to easily see the footprints in the leaves thanks to my Faunus eyesight. Then I heard the telltale sounds of battle, the rain of bullets on scales and blades against scales. Using the rest of the momentum I had stored, I buffed my strength as I burst from the surrounding bushes and rammed into the white head of the King Taijitu.

It slammed into a tree and was momentarily dazed, so I went to get the other head off of Ren. Halfway there, the white head intercepted my path and tried to take a bit of me. I stepped to the left and let it brush my right side so I could bleed some momentum from it. Grabbing my swords from their sheathes, I combined them to form The Heavens, as it allowed me to have a free hand for dodging when I needed to not take a hit. The head came back for a second round, but this time I stabbed my sword in its eye and it recoiled in pain.

Activating the fire and gravity dust caused a small-scale explosion, sending the snake Grimm into an even more wild fit. I grabbed Jolder from its holster and shifted it to its hammer form. I slammed the head against my sword, as it was still in the head of the snake, and my swing was mighty. My sword went all the way through the head of it and got stuck in a tree across the clearing. I left it there to help Ren finish of the other head, but stopped when I saw that he was currently slamming its own fang into its head.

"Thank you for the…" I stopped him.

"Let me just check something really quick." I shimmied my way up one of the taller trees in the clearing and checked above the forest canopy, looking for a flare. There was none, so I shot my own off. When I got back down, I saw that Nora had found her way over to us and was currently holding my sword in one hand while holding Magnhild in her other. All while dangling upside down from a branch. "Hello, partners."

Nora flipped out of the tree and landed on her feet, tossing my sword to me. "Yes! The Pink Brigade is together forever! And you even have a hammer, we're hammer buddies! Now it's time to head off to the ruins. Follow me!" She turned to the east end of the clearing and I coughed. She flipped the other direction and I coughed harder, then she went north and stopped just at the edge waiting for me to cough again. I gave a thumb up. "Right, onwards!"

I looked to Ren, and he just motioned his head. Looks like Nora is on point and I'll take the rear. The sound of guns firing and roars filled the forest, but mostly only to me with the enhanced hearing. We ran into a few Beowolves along the way, but Nora just blew them up with a few grenades. Further in, we ran into a pack of Ursai and took most of them out. Then, Nora proceeded to jump on the back of the one we hadn't killed and shoved the head of Magnhild between two of its back plates. Firing off a grenade saw to it that the Ursa went running, and Ren and I had to follow after.

As soon as Ren was looking out of breath, I scooped his legs out from under him and carried him bridal style. "We speak of this to no one." I nodded, I would not damage his masculinity by telling others I had carried him like this. But… I might as well tell Nora since she was here with us. Every once and awhile, Nora would fire off another grenade to spur the Ursa on further. The finishing blow happened when she crashed into the clearing with the ruins and a lightning grenade was in the launching chamber.

I gently put Ren down, and leaned forward to get my breath back. In a calm voice, Ren said, "Nora, please never do that again. Grimm are for slaying, not riding."

That conjured an image in my head and I had to stifle a chuckle. But I shook my head to rid myself of the image. Sadly, Nora had not stuck around to hear Ren. She had rushed over to the Ruins and grabbed the golden rook piece and was now singing "I'm queen of the castle!"

"Nora!" Ren shouted, and I leaned away from him with a scrunched-up face. He could be loud when he needed to be.

"Coming Ren!" Nora skipped back over to us while carrying the relic behind her back. She handed it over to Ren with an expectant look on her face. Ren took it and gave her a pat on the head, and she held her fists below her chin and hopped up and down in excitement.

"Did… did she just ride in on an Ursa?" Yang was pointing at Nora.

"Heads Up!" Everyone in the clearing looked skyward to see Ruby falling. She was knocked out of the air and into a tree by Jaune. "Oooh, what hit me?" She shook her head and glanced over to see Jaune, hanging upside down and waving at her. "Hey Jaune."

"Hey Ruby." He was now trying to get himself right side up on the branch, which was proving to be a difficult task.

"Did your sister just fall from the sky?" Blake asked Yang, and Yang simply nodded with that confused look still on her face.

A crashing sound that had previously been covered became loud, and Pyrrha and the Deathstalker following her crashed through the tree line. She dodged its swipes at her as she ran next to the tree line, weaving in and out of the trees hoping to evade the Deathstalker. "Did she run all the way here with that thing following her?!"

"Could we all just calm down for three seconds before anything else crazy happens?!" Yang shouted, going up in a blaze. Ren, Nora and I walked over to her side and I held a hand on her shoulder and pointed upwards. Weiss was seen hanging from the talon of the extremely large Nevermore.

"How could you just leave me?!" Her voice was loud enough for the entire group to hear it, even over this distance and the wind that was whipping in her face.

Ruby yelled back up to her. "I told you to jump!"

"She's going to fall." Blake stated in a monotone voice.

"Pshaa, she'll be fine." Ruby waved her hand in a dismissive gesture.

Ren, in the same voice as Blake, "She's falling."

Her rapier had fallen out of her hands when she fell, so she couldn't summon any glyphs to help her descent. Luckily for her, Jaune had finally gotten himself onto the branch he had landed in and he jumped to catch her. "Are you just, falling in?" And there's his dumb one liner. They both froze in the air for a second, before glancing down and yelling.

I dashed over to where they would land and caught them both, cancelling out any further motion. They both had their eyes closed, expecting to feel pain. Weiss opened her eyes first and glanced to me. "Thank you. If you would put us down now?" I did just so, and Jaune finally opened his eyes.

He paled at the sight of me, and in a squeaky voice greeted me "Hey… Echo."

I simply stared impassively at him. "Jaune." We made our way back to the group and Pyrrha was finally hit by the Deathstalker, which brought her to our feet.

"Great! The gang's all here, so we can die together!" Yang shouted in false cheer.

Ruby readied her scythe. "Not if I have anything to say about it!" She darted towards the Deathstalker using her semblance, but didn't expect it to be so tough. Her scythe bounced off its mask and it took a swipe at her with a claw, which she ducked under and started to run normally back to us. The Deathstalker screeched and the Nevermore echoed the sound, launching feathers down at the fleeing girl.

Her cape got pinned to the ground with a feather and the Deathstalker caught up and raised its stinger to bring it down upon Ruby, but neither Weiss or I would allow that. We were there in a second, with Weiss creating a wall of ice that trapped the stinger mid-strike and me clipping the feather so Ruby could get moving again. "Let's just leave! We have our relics, and there was no need to kill anything."

"I wholeheartedly agree. Run and live to fight another day is something I can get behind." Jaune quipped.

The group started to sprint further north, but I stopped them. "Wrong way guys, Beacon cliffs are the other way!" They turned around and got to moving through the trees, with the Deathstalker finally breaking free from its icy prison. I quickly caught up to them.

"Good idea sis. The bird can't see us well and the scorpion has to push through trees!" Jaune was the least in shape of us all, so even now he was huffing and puffing from the exertion.

I rolled my eyes and picked him up, throwing him over my shoulder. "Yeah, Jaune. Though I'm not sure that thing is just going to let us climb in peace. Neither will the Nevermore."

He whined. "So, we are going to have to kill them after all."

"Seems like it." We shut up and I focused on running. "Jaune, I need you to pound on my back. I'm running out of steam."

"Huh? Why would that help you?"

"My semblance, Jaune! Just do it." He complied and started to beat on my back, refilling my reserves. The rest of the way to the cliffs was met with no resistance, probably because everything else was already killed. We reached the base of the cliff with the Deathstalker following not seconds behind. I had to put Jaune down so I could focus on fighting.

The Nevermore was still circling above us, but it wasn't firing down feathers. There was a loud bang and the Nevermore's head exploded, the body falling to the ground behind the Deathstalker. It didn't faze the giant scorpion, which scuttled towards us. We split into our separate teams, with RWBY going left and JNPR going right.

"Try to blind it! It was in a cave when we found it." Jaune had gotten out Crocea Mors, extending the shield. Under Jaune's advice, everyone began to pepper the faceplate with bullets while aiming for the eyes. Well, everyone except me, because I wasn't going to waste gravity rounds on this, and my other rounds would not really do anything against it.

Someone landed a lucky hit and blinded one of its eyes, and it screeched in pain. The distraction of one damaged eye was enough for them to hit the other three on its face. With it now blind, we had more options on how to attack. Nora went to hit it with her hammer, but that only served to make a tiny crack in it and make it even more angry. It lashed out with its stinger in the direction Nora had moved, but I deflected it with the axe head.

Ruby slashed at the connecting point where its stinger met its tail and almost severed it in one go. "Guys, I have an Idea! Make sure its stinger is above its head then Ruby hits it again just like she did. Nora, you hammer it in." We nodded and moved to new positions. I stood right in front of it and focused fire on the crack in its face, chipping away at the mask.

"Weiss, I need a platform to run on. The stinger is too high!" Weiss followed Ruby's orders and made a bridge of glyphs in the air. Ruby jumped on it and started towards the stinger. "Yang, Blake, hold it still!" Blake threw the ribbon of Gambol Shroud to Yang and they wrapped it around the tail, immobilizing it.

"Ren, Pyrrha, keep its claws away from Ruby." Jaune took a claw head on and was sent flying back. I caught him and put him down. "Thanks, sis." Ren and Pyrrha went on the outside of the Deathstalker, dividing its attention at the same time to it would stay facing forward but keep its claws to its sides. Ruby sliced through the remaining bit keeping the stinger to the tail and it landed right in the spot I had chipped away at with Nora's help. "Nora, now!"

I gave her a boost on my shield, enhancing my leg and arm strength so she didn't have to use a grenade to launch. She flew through the air for a short time and then pulled the trigger on her launcher to send her shooting down. The head of Magnhild impacted the stinger and pushed it down into the ground, instantly killing the Grimm. There was a short celebration before the group realized that now we had to climb the cliff.

Luckily, for them not me, I had an easy solution. I checked my scroll for my aura level and decided I had enough for the plan. "I'll throw you guys up there. I just need one tiny thing." I turned to Nora and put my hands on her shoulders. "I need you to hit me with Magnhild."

Her eyes widened. "You know what my weapon is called?! And I get to hit you!? For free?"

"Yes, yes, and yes Nora." She squeed and swung Magnhild at me. It filled me up decently, but I needed another hit. "Another, slightly harder this time." She hit me again, and I got enough to throw them all up. Since she had so graciously given me the energy I decided to throw her first, and she went sailing up the rock face. I turned to the others and they just had the stupidest look on their faces.

"You let her hit you with Magnhild, twice. And you're still standing." Ren was the best, only followed by Blake in the reaction. "You're insane."

"Hey, I was never sane to begin with, at least by those standards. You're next!" I wrapped my hand around his wrist and tossed him up, and he was caught at the edge by Nora. This went on until I was the last one at the bottom. "Now it's time to climb." I started to climb but then I looked over to the left and noticed some stairs carved into the rock, and I dropped from laughing at how stupid I was feeling now.

After climbing to the top of the stairs, I met up with everyone else. I walked over to Jaune and slumped on him. "You're carrying me now. I'm tired." He knew enough to not complain and just gave in to my demand, picking me up and carrying me with both arms. "Wake me up when we get called up for the teams." I was tired and sweaty and dirty, and I fell asleep being carried by my brother.

0-0-0

I was woken up by Jaune nudging my shoulder. We were sitting in the auditorium, me with my weapons still since it seems nobody wanted to touch them while I was out of it. "Now up to the stage: Cardin Winchester, Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, and Sky Lark. You four will henceforth be known as Team CRDL, led by Cardin Winchester." Polite clapping followed the announcement and Cardin soaked it up like a dry sponge in the desert.

"Yes, please seat yourselves. Next to the stage, our five-person team: Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, Pyrrha Nikos, Echo Arc, and Lie Ren. You five will henceforth be known as Team JNPER, led by… Jaune Arc!" Pyrrha smiled at Jaune and gave him a punch to the shoulder, knocking him off his feet. She looked honestly sorry about it and helped him up. "I expect great things from you, young man."

"Next to the stage: Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long. You will be known as Team RWBY, and you will be led by Ruby Rose." As Ruby and Yang celebrated, Ozpin took a sip of his seemingly endless mug of coffee. "This year seems like it will be… interesting." He walked off with Goodwitch following close behind him.

"I guess that means we're to go to our dorms?" Weiss looked around, and saw that others were already heading to the dorm building. "Come Ruby, let us find our room. I am feeling quite tired."

"Okay partner!" Ruby bolted off to the dorms, leaving Weiss behind, which Weiss huffed indignantly at and she slightly sped her pace up to reach the dorms faster.

"Wanna race Blake?" Yang turned to Blake to see she was already walking towards the dorms, with her face stuck in a book. "Fine, be all quiet and mysterious. You'll have to be open with us at some point, so we can _get a read on you_." Nobody acknowledged her pun as she followed after Blake.

"It seems like a good idea. The staff must have already put whatever was in our lockers besides our weapons in our room, so we should rest up in preparation for classes tomorrow." Grumbled acceptance met Pyrrha's suggestion and I wrapped my arms around Jaune's throat and told him to carry me again. Berate me all you want, but when you have an older brother that will carry you without complaint there's no need to walk when you're tired.

"So Jaune, why didn't you leave a note?" I whispered in his ear and his face twitched.

"So, they called you, huh?" He moved slightly back to the rear of the group so the others wouldn't hear him.

"Of course they called me Jaune, their only son disappeared from the house without even as much as a note. But don't worry, I didn't tell them you would be here. I still want you to call them later and tell them you're here, though. Dad will be over the moon that he has two kids in Beacon." That got a laugh out of him and he moved back to the center of the group.

"Jaune, was it just me, or did Ozpin say this is Echo Arc?" Pyrrha asked when we entered the building and walked through the halls to our dorm room.

"Yeah, I'd like you to meet my sister, Echo Arc. Echo this is my partner, Pyrrha Nikos."

I unlinked one arm from Jaune's neck to shake Pyrrha's hand. "Pleasure to meet you Pyrrha. Thanks for helping out my brother in the forest. He may not be the sharpest sword in the workshop, but he's still a good guy."

Jaune let out a indignant squawk and Pyrrha giggled. "I gathered, but he is my partner and I wouldn't want anyone else now. If you don't mind me asking, what is with the headphones?"

I moved my headphones of the top of my head to sit them around my neck. "I'm a bat Faunus. The headphones allow me to control how much noise reaches my ears and they also help cover them. I get treated better if people think I'm human."

"If you're a Faunus, then that means Jaune is…?"

"No no no, Jaune is human, along with the rest of the family."

Jaune piped in, after opening the door to our new room. "Yeah, she's the only Faunus in the immediate family. She got the gene from our second uncle or something like that." He set me on one of the four beds. "I just realized that this room has one too few beds."

"Don't worry Jaune, we can just share one until they get another in here." My face grew into a smile. "Oh, and for everyone else's information, I'm actually adopted and didn't get a gene from our second uncle." Jaune threw his hands up, like all the work he put into the lie was wasted. "Jaune's dad knew mine from before the village was destroyed. I was the only survivor, and when I was evaced to the hospital in Ansel dad adopted me and brought me home with my 'twin sister' Lily."

"So why weren't you with Jaune when you got to Beacon? You could have been close to each other during initiation and been sure to team up." Nora seemed confused, and Pyrrha nodded at her reasoning.

"Well, for one thing, I didn't know he was going to be here for sure. He didn't really tell anyone he applied and was accepted into Beacon. Second is that he's seventeen, he has a right to live his own life. I won't always be around, and neither will our family. So, in retrospect, I'm glad that he made a partner that wasn't me."

"You seem to be a nice older sister, looking out for your brother like this." Pyrrha beamed at me, glad that I had accepted her as Jaune's partner so easily. Jaune groaned at this and slammed face first into Pyrrha's bed. "What? Did I say something wrong?"

"She's my younger sister." Jaune spoke, muffled by thick sheets. The rest of the team looked to me for an answer.

"Jaune is a more than a year older than I am. I'm sixteen."

"You got into Beacon even though you're sixteen? That is a major accomplishment. Congratulations." Pyrrha held her hands together and smiled.

"Eh, Ruby did one better and got in at fifteen. Only difference between her and I is that I didn't go to a Hunter school. I was trained in the village until ten and then worked at a place in Vale as an apprentice. I simply got in when I helped Ruby stop Torchwick from robbing a Dust shop."

Nora jumped in front of me and began to shake my shoulders. "You fought a criminal?! Why didn't you invite me? I want to smash some baddie legs!"

"Nora, I didn't know you at the time, I didn't know I was going to be fighting him that night, and I really don't think that your style of fighting would be good in the streets of Vale. They are tight and full of civilians. Your hammer deals with wide powerful swings and your ranged option is a grenade launcher. Not really the best in an urban setting with civilians around."

She deflated. "Yeah, you're right." She perked up again. "But the next time you go to fight criminals you have to tell me!"

"Sure Nora, I'll be absolutely sure to tell you when I plan on fighting criminals." She nodded and went to 'stress test' the bed that she was going to be sleeping on. I looked at Ren and shook my head slightly, mouthing that I would not tell her. He gave me a smile and a nod before moving to his bed beside Nora. "Oh, and make sure not to tell the other students about Ruby and I fighting Torchwick, it's supposed to be on the down low. I just wanted to not keep a secret from my team." I pointedly looked at Jaune and he paled.

"That is understandable, as it would be unwise to keep secrets from your teammates for the next four years. Anyways, does anyone mind me getting the first shower?" Pyrrha looked to us, and we just shook our heads no. "Fabulous. I will make sure to leave enough hot water for all of you." She grabbed a fresh towel from the linens closet next to the bathroom door and entered. Not long after, the sound of running water was heard.

I put on a mischievous smile. "So, Jaune, got tall and beautiful as a partner. Tell me, has she already ensnared you in her looks?"

He sputtered. "What? Pyrrha is my partner, nothing else. Yeah, I would like to be her friend, but nothing like that. Why do you even ask?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe I'm just looking at the people my brother has an interest in? Or maybe I'm looking at her for myself. She's beautiful and tall, has legs for days, and that hair is fiery." I made a clawing motion. "Echo likes."

"Oh gods, I thought you liked guys!" He held his head between his hands. "That was way too much information."

"Why would I like guys? Most of them are idiots, trying to woo me with their muscles or their stupid 'weapons'." I looked over at Ren. "There are dome good ones, though. Like Ren here, and you, but you two do not fit my type and Nora has dibs on Ren."

"Lies and slander! Ren and I are not together-together, we simply stay together and will do so until the end of our days." Nora clung to Ren, pulling him to the side.

"Of course, Nora, not together-together. And then Jaune, you're my brother and you're more of the innocent puppy type." He held his hands tighter against his head, and the water shut off.

"Please, can we not talk about this anymore?" Pyrrha walked out, in her red and gold sleep clothes when he said this, and tilted her head to the side.

"Speaking about what?" Her confusion was funny and I chuckled.

"Nothing, Pyr. I was just telling stories about Jaune from before I moved out." I jumped up from the bed I was laying on. "I call next shower!" I nabbed my sleep clothes from my luggage bag and a towel and jauntily walked into the bathroom.

0-0

"Okay then, have a good shower." Pyrrha called out to Echo before the bathroom door shut. "Will she continue to tell these stories when she comes back out? I would like to know more about my partner."

"No, she will not. I think she will just want to get to sleep as soon as she's out. She normally did that from before, taking warm showers to relax her muscles and then falling asleep right after." Jaune made sure to wipe off any dirt that Echo had tracked onto the bed. He looked over to his partner and saw the things his sister had spoken about, causing him to stare a little longer than he normally would. A blush spreads across his face.

"Jaune, are you alright? Your face is rather red." Pyrrha held her hand up to her partners face, to feel the heat in his forehead. He jerked away and gave a nervous chuckle.

"I'm fine Pyrrha, just thinking about some things. I think I'm going to just turn in and take a shower in the morning." He quickly made to change out of his clothes and armor, but stopped when he remembered there were still females present. "Uh, could you guys turn around? I don't want to change in front of people."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Pyrrha turned around to look at the door, and Nora turned herself and Ren around to look at the window. The rustling of clothes and clinking of armor sounded before there was a zipping sound, and Jaune spoke up.

"Alright, I'm decent. You can stop admiring the paint on the walls." The other three in the room turned around and had to stifle their chuckles, even Ren. Jaune was standing there in a bright blue bunny onesie. "What? What's so funny?"

"Jaune, what are you wearing?" Ren spoke up, eyeing the clothes the other male had donned.

"My bunny onesie. It's comfortable and warm. My sister got it for me." He stuck his hands in the pockets and pouted.

"Echo got it for you." It was more of a statement than a question.

"No, my sister Lily, the same age as Echo though. She sent in fifty box tops and got it for me instead of getting it for herself because she said she already had sleep wear that she liked."

"Fifty box tops? What were the box tops on?" Nora looked intrigued, like she was maybe thinking of getting one for herself. She didn't really need one though, she was perfectly content with her tank top and sleep shorts.

"Pumpkin Pete's Frosty Flakes." At this revelation, Pyrrha cringed and looked a little green. She tried her hardest to repress the thoughts of that disgusting cereal. "Now you're looking a little sick Pyrrha."

"Please, Jaune, never mention that cereal around me again, especially the fact that your sister ate fifty boxes of it to get you that… onesie." Her voice was filled with disgust at the thought of the cereal.

"So, I should probably get something else to wear to sleep? I can go into Vale on the weekend and pick something up."

"That would be greatly appreciated." Pyrrha slipped into her bed and sighed. "Your sister seems nice. Is there anything you want us to know about her?"

Jaune looked conflicted, sitting on the bed. Then he decided to tell them when he realized the water was still running. "She became the golden child of the family when she was seven. She graduated from high school so she could focus on Huntsman training, and this guy from Signal came to train her every once and awhile. It's kind of hard to live up to those kinds of expectations. I was kind of hoping that I would come to Beacon and tell my dad and mom so they would be proud of me. I guess I was too late though, Echo already made it here, a year early to boot."

Pyrrha got out of her bed and placed a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Jaune, you shouldn't feel the need to live up to other's expectations. You are your own person, you should dictate how you live your life. And besides, you made it here, so you obviously belong here alongside your sister and us. We believe in you." Ren and Nora nodded their affirmation.

Jaune put on a brittle smile. "Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it. I really am tired though, so good night." He slid under the covers and was soon asleep. The water turned off and echo shortly after came out in her sleep clothes.

"Thank you, guys, for listening to him. I don't think I would have gotten any of that out of him myself." She sat down on the bed beside her brother and moved some hair out of his face, a faraway look on her face. "He's really too nice for his own good, you know. Doesn't want to trouble others even if he needs help. He tried to stop people from bullying me when I was little, but it ended up with him getting bullied as well. He didn't tell mom or dad, because he was supposed to be the big heroic knight saving his little sister."

There was a quiet 'oh' from Pyrrha. Nora just nodded and Ren got his look in his eye, like he knew what Jaune felt. "Anyways, we should get to sleep soon. We have classes early tomorrow morning and we don't want to be tired for them."

Nora and Ren took extremely short showers and slid into bed, and Nora fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Echo had sidled up next to Jaune and held him in her arms with her chin resting on his head. He wrapped his arms around her like she was an oversized teddy bear. Pyrrha stayed awake longer than everyone else, digesting the information that had been given to her. She decided that she would be the best teammate to the four people in the room, and that she would help the person that made her feel human at this new school.

0-0-0

I woke up sometime in the middle of the night, laying behind Jaune as the big spoon in the bed. I slowly slid out of bed and checked my scroll. Four fifty. I decided that I most likely wouldn't get back to sleep at this time and got into my uniform. After donning the new clothes, I put on my headphones and slipped out the door silently. I made sure to have my scroll on me so I didn't get locked out. I decided to just take a walk around, get a feel for the new place I would be staying at.

My feet carried me to the main thoroughfare of Beacon, with the statue. I tilted my head and took a good long look at it. The chiseling was done by someone who was a master at the art, every detail strikingly obvious in the stone. Even the two crescent moons on the shield stood out in the dim light of the current moon, slightly covered by some clouds. The little girl was smiling, holding onto a wooden sword but still hiding behind the man that was holding the great blade. "Out for a walk to clear your head, Miss Arc?"

I had heard him approaching, but made no appearance that I did. "Yes, Headmaster Ozpin. I woke up and decided that I would not be able to fall back asleep at this time. My feet brought me here of their own accord, no nudging from me."

"I see." He stood beside me, looking at the statue as well. "Your ancestor is truly an inspiration for many Huntsmen and Huntresses. I'm sure he would be proud of you and your brother."

I was quiet, thinking about his words. My brow furrowed, and I asked him, "Why did you let Jaune in?"

"What exactly do you mean, Miss Arc? He seems to be an exceptional student, why would I not want him to attend this academy?" He raised his brow, putting both hands on his cane. A slight upturn of his mouth was present.

"You know he forged his papers. And don't try to act surprised and tell me you don't, because that won't work. He turned them in within the past week and you still accepted them, and he doesn't exactly have the most athletic of builds. His fighting is atrocious, though it is slightly offset by the fact he is a great leader. Still has things to learn, but that isn't the point." I looked over at him again and his smile was slightly larger.

"You are smart, you know this? I let him in because of the fact I can tell he will be a wonderful leader in the future. And I will tell you, I almost made you leader of your team." My eyes narrowed and he chuckled, taking another sip of his coffee. "Don't think we didn't see how you were guiding him in the forest. You gave subtle nods to him, tips that most others wouldn't see. Your strategy is extremely sound, but you don't want to be leader. Why is that?"

I sighed and put my hands in my skirt pockets, touching the chess piece I now carried there. "Trust me, this is the way it was meant to be. Jaune is more of a person that people can get behind and fight with, I'm more of a person that can give orders. He's more of a Huntsman than me in that regard, while I'm more of a military leader."

"The way it was meant to be?" I said nothing to this and he shook his head. "Forgive me, I sometimes forget the gap in our ages. I speak to others sometimes like they are the same as me."

"Do you ever sleep? I'm inclined to believe you don't, seeing how much coffee you drink." I motioned to his mug and he laughed.

"I sometimes find myself awake at strange times of the night, when I find it is too late to get more sleep, but too early to get started on work. I'm sure Glynda would not like me if I woke her up right now and told her that I needed her to get to working on files. Then again, I also find myself tired in the evenings more and more lately. It is normal, I guess, for people of my age."

I scoffed. "Headmaster, please, keep your jokes. I have a feeling I will be hearing enough from Yang to last me a lifetime."

"So, you believe that your team and Team RWBY will remain close?" He tilted his head, a now smaller smirk still on his face.

"Yes, I have a feeling we will stay close, even after Beacon. Ruby and Yang are already good friends and I can tell that Blake is someone I can get along well with." I rubbed my chin. "Maybe Weiss will have to do some work on her attitude and viewpoints, but if she does that she seems like she would be a wonderful person to have as a friend."

"I am curious, and you do not need to tell me if you do not wish to, but do you know of Miss Belladonna's…?" He motioned slightly.

"You mean to ask if I know that she's a Faunus? If so, then yes, I know. Even though she went through lengths to hide it, wrapping her ears in a bow. It twitches every now and again, not bending in the air like it should. And if you are asking whether I know of her involvement in… a certain group then I know that as well." I thought on my words I would speak. "If she came here, abandoning them, then she has already started to fix her mistakes. It takes more than just courage to leave the group, or so I hear, and they really want to keep their members."

Ozpin nodded and tapped his cane. "Yes, they do not take lightly to people leaving them. How did you know of that?"

"I recognized her from years ago," I lied. "She had gone to a rally in Vale when I was new here. I was passing by, and there was this little girl with cat ears holding up a sign. The resemblance was easy to make between the two images of her, just replacing the bow with ears."

"Do you intend to tell the others about her?"

"No, that isn't my place. She's on her own team and I'm on mine. It is also her secret to tell, so when she's ready she will tell her team. They might have to work a few things out, like the fact that she was practically lying to them the entire time, through omission, but I have a feeling they will become a stronger team after that. And as for telling my team, they will most likely learn it when the rest of Team RWBY does." I rubbed at my hand, massaging a muscle. "Is there a reason you came to talk to me instead of staying quiet?"

"I have found that company is nice to have during these late-night, early-morning walks. If I wasn't speaking to you, then I would be reminiscing about times where we didn't have criminals fighting Huntresses in training in the streets of the city. Of times where my friends and comrades were happy and young, not bothering with worrying about death. The times where I didn't need my cane to get around." His hand tightened slightly on his cane. "Again, I apologize for bringing up such heavy subjects."

"It is no problem, sir. It is better to get them off your chest than let them fester and cause negative thoughts. Only more things to draw the Grimm, and nothing to repulse them. And why worry about death? When you have life today, you know what is happening. Tomorrow will always be an unknown. And the next day, and so on and so forth. I could die tomorrow, but time would keep marching on, and people would grow older. Eventually, they too would die. But this planet will continue to spin and the sun will continue to shine, just as sure as the moon is broken."

Ozpin nodded and tapped his fingers on his cane. "An interesting view on the subject. Qrow always told me you seemed older than you were, that you always spoke as if you were wise beyond your age. He spoke the truth." We stood in silence for a few more moments before he asked another question. "When we brought you in after your encounter with Torchwick, what exactly did you mean when you said, 'To remove threats that may harm more than just a few'?"

My face tightened as I licked my lips, pondering my response. "As I'm sure you know, there are real monsters out there worse than the Grimm. People who plan attacks, hurt countless people with their actions, the real monsters in the dark. The White Fang is only a part of this darkness, they're just the one's most think of when they hear 'evil forces' because of how they took to wearing Grimm masks. I consider them to be worse than the Grimm."

0-0

Ozpin looked to the young lady standing next to him, a pensive look on his face. _"Could it be possible? Could she know about Salem, about the maidens? The relics? Her own words condemn her, yet she speaks then to me in confidence. If she does know about them, whose side is she on."_ Ozpin narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Qrow speaks highly of you, of how much potential you have." It was time to test the waters.

She waved it off. "Qrow speaks about many things, mostly about the next time he'll drink. I haven't seen him in years though, and he still talks about me?"

"Yes, he seems adamant about your skills. He speaks of you every time he has the chance to. I assume he also brags of you to his sister." A twitch, barely noticeable, but seen by someone who has been reading people for years.

"Last I was aware, he said he hadn't spoken to his sister in years, ever since she left Mr. Xiao Long with her child. Why would he be speaking with her suddenly after such a thing?"

"I will not pretend to know. I'm also sure he spoke of you to a mutual friend of ours. A friend that he was sent to look after, which is the reason why he stopped attending training sessions and took a break from teaching over at Signal." The young lady's hands went back to her pockets, and Ozpin could make out the outline of a chess piece hidden in the pocket. "Would you like to know our friend's name?"

"No thank you, Ozpin." Her voice was tense, short. He was so close.

"Her name is Amber."


	6. Chapter 5- Fire and Bronze

**A.N. and Reviewer Acknowledgements**

 **So, as you who are following me must have realized, I have been popping out chapter quickly. This is due to the fact that I have hit a creative streak and have a large amount of free time on my hands. I have mostly been able to finish a chapter in a day, when I don't get distracted by other things. This will last for about a month at this point. In the future, expect the chapters to come out more slowly and not on any real schedule.**

 **Guest 1-The song lyrics part was just because I was listening to that song at the time and I like how it fit in the story at the point. If you want me to not do something like that again, please tell me.**

 **Guest 2-Echo's bat ears are located where human ears would normally be situated, but they are small enough to be close to human ear size. She does not have a pair of human ears. And the cat ears thing was mostly aesthetic in reason, as I do like the look of those headphones in real life and have a pair of them myself. The other part of having cat ears is because of directional hearing, like how cats can turn their ears around to pick up sounds better, that's how the ears work.**

 **Jack Redhawke- I am glad you enjoy the story that much. Refer to the A.N. above for specifics regarding my upload schedule.**

 **serioushugsies- Thank you!**

 **(This was a long section, sorry about that. Onto the story!)**

0-0-0

"What a nice name, Ozpin. Sadly, I don't know her." I pulled out my scroll and pretended to check the time. "Wow, would you look at that, I should probably get ready to wake everyone else up to get ready for class. Don't want to be late on the first day and all."

Ozpin takes a glance at his wrist, an expensive looking watch strapped to it. "It's only five fifteen, class does not start for another three hours and forty-five minutes. I could tell you a few tales about Amber, she is quite the fairy of the group."

I started to walk away. He was out of his mind, trying to bring in someone he hardly knew into this. Or he was trying to see how much I knew, whose side I was on. "Ozpin, people who get involved with you get hurt." I looked back to him to see his expression darken slightly.

"Miss Arc, what are you trying to tell me?"

"I came here to study and train to be a Huntress. Study and train being the key words. I'm not one yet, and those that have had training have died on missions you gave them. Ruby's mom, Summer Rose, died on a mission you gave her."

Ozpin flinched slightly, the miniscule movement causing a scrape of his cane on the stone beneath him. "How do you know about that? The details were never given to the public."

"Qrow, he spoke of his previous teammates often. Even more so when he was drunk off his rocker. What I'm telling you, is keep Jaune and I out of your battles. He doesn't need it and neither do I. Good day, sir." I tried to walk off again, but was stopped with one last question.

"Did he tell you about Her?" The short question, the implied capital letter on Her, how his cane scraped against the ground some more. He was ready to silence me if I stepped out of line.

"Who? Her? He spoke of plenty of females, didn't refer to any of them as Her though. Mostly just Nice Legs, or Short Skirt." That's right, I don't know about Her. Nobody in Vale knows about her. She isn't a threat, and neither am I, so leave me alone already.

"Thank you, have a good day Miss Arc." I left him there, standing at the base of the statue. After I was sure that I had left his eyesight, I sprinted back to my room. But I knew, I knew there was no escape as long as I was here at Beacon.

0-0

Ozpin watched the girl walk away, his eyes bearing down on her back. When she turned the corner, he heard her footsteps pick up speed and they were soon gone. He stood there, still for a few moments before robotically bringing his hand down to his pocket. Pulling out his scroll with one hand, his cane and mug in his other hand, he swiftly dialed a number.

Not even a full ring later, the tired voice of Glynda Goodwitch was heard through the device. "Ozpin, what do you need at… five seventeen in the morning?" She had just gotten up to get ready for today's classes, and to get some final paperwork finished.

"Tell the others to keep an eye on Miss Arc and her team. Maybe even keep an eye on Team RWBY. She might tell them." Ozpin was going through the people she might tell in his mind, seeing if there was anybody else he needed to put on a watchlist.

"May I ask why you're telling me to watch her and her friends, Ozpin?" A soft yawn was heard through the scroll.

"She knows, Glynda." The yawn stopped. "I do not know how, but she knows about Her and what is happening. We need to know what she knows."

"I'll be sure to tell the others and keep my ears peeled. Is there anything specific you want me to do?" A shuffling of papers was heard, as Glynda looked for Echo's files.

"Be sure to keep quiet about anything around her. Don't question people directly in her circles." A thought caught him. "We need to know her true fighting potential. Qrow talked about it before, like how he spoke of Ruby and her scythe skills. When she comes to your class today, call her up for a demonstration. Have her fight Mister Winchester."

"Of course, sir. Good day." She hung up, intent on reading over the young girl's file a few more times. Ozpin placed his scroll back in his pocket and walked off to check on his friend that was taking a nap.

Yes, it was just a nap and nothing more.

0-0-0

I made it back to the room, quietly opening and closing the door. Everyone was still asleep, so I rummaged through my stuff and quickly put it away. Grabbing my journal, I made a quick entry on a blank page. 'Ozpin knows that I know. Keep yourself safe, keep your team safe, keep Team RWBY safe, keep Jaune safe. Be conscious of yourself around the professors.' Still in English, so nobody would read it and know what it said. I went through the journal again to refresh myself on events that would happen, and sat at the desk for some time.

When I finally finished, the clock on the wall read six forty-five. My leg was slightly numb because I had been sitting on it and bouncing the other one. I got up and stretched, letting out a happy coo when the feeling came back and a few of my joints popped. I heard a quiet murmur from Pyrrha's bed, and she sat up, groggily swiping at her eyes to clear them. "Morning, Pyr."

"Morning Echo. How long have you been up?" She swung her feet around to the edge of the bed, letting them fall to the floor.

"A few hours. I couldn't get back to sleep, so I went for a walk. Classes don't start for another two ours or so." I watched as she moved to the bathroom, letting out a quiet yawn as she opened the door.

She came out a few minutes later, looking somewhat more alert and awake. "I normally wake up at about this time normally to get ready for the day. Should we wake the others?"

I bounced the question around for a second before nodding. "Yeah, we should. They need to be up and ready early if they want to be ready for classes and get breakfast. You all can unpack after classes I guess." I motioned to the closet and the bookshelf. "I already sectioned off everything for us." I walked over to Ren and gently shook him, and he grumbled slightly before turning over and pushing his head further into his pillow.

"Two more hours, Nora."

"No can-do Ren, you have to start the day off nice and early." I paused. "And I'm not Nora." He tried to delve deeper into his covers, but I tore them out of his grasp and left him to the cruel morning air.

"Fine, I'm up." Much like Pyrrha had done, he swung his legs around to the edge of the bed and plodded over to the bathroom. Albeit, slower than Pyrrha and without the yawn.

I woke up Nora, who was immediately alert, and she dashed into the bathroom before Ren had closed it. Pyrrha looked to me to see if we should allow that and I just shrugged. From what I know, that was normal behavior from the two childhood friends and travel companions.

Pyrrha was trying to wake up Jaune, with little to show for her effort. He had made a cocoon of his sheets and brought his pillow inside of it. She was trying to see if there was a place she could grab to get the sheets off him, but she couldn't find one and neither could I. "how are we to wake him if he's like this?"

I tilted my head, thinking of possible ways. Fire Dust? No, we don't want to make any damage this early on in the school year, and Nora would most likely be the one to cause enough damage that I didn't need to add to it. Yelling? Didn't want to bother the rooms around us with loud noises in the morning. Pushing the larvae Jaune to the floor? He had aura and we need him up. I nod and do just that.

Pyrrha just looks shocked. Jaune is groaning in pain, though the blankets muffle it quite well. "Jaune get up, we have class in about two hours and I'm pretty sure the rest of the team will want to eat breakfast. Everyone still needs to put on their uniforms and that includes you. Please tell me you learned how to tie a tie."

A muffled no was heard through the blankets as he wiggled his way out. He managed to free his head and one arm. "Could someone help me out of this?" Pyrrha and I rolled our eyes and helped him out now that we could see a seam to open the cocoon from. "Why did someone roll me off the bed and onto the floor?"

"Toughen up Jaune. You have your aura now, and you weren't going to get up any other way." I glanced to where I had put my weapons earlier and they were still sitting there. "Tell you what, I need to go put my stuff in my locker. I'll meet you all in the cafeteria in forty-five minutes." Picking my weapons up and moving across the room, I stopped at the door and turned to Pyrrha. "If you could make sure that he stays awake and learns how to tie a tie, it would be most appreciated."

She simply smiled and nodded her head. "Of course, he is my partner and our leader. I will make sure he is ready for today."

I left the room and stood outside the door for a second. Jaune was heard through the door, "Can I go to sleep for ten more minutes?" His voice sounded hopeful, and there was no doubt he was trying to use some puppy dog eyes on Pyrrha.

"No, Jaune. Your sister asked to make sure you got up, and that is what I will do." Her voice was soft, but had the stern tone behind it.

"Aw, dangit." The rustling of sheets as he put them back on the bed and tidied up was heard and I started off. The shrill sound of a whistle sounded off behind me and I stopped, heading back.

Knocking on RWBY's door was awarded with it opening, a chipper looking Ruby looking at me. "Good morning Echo, I was just waking up my team! Wanna come in?"

I peeked in over her shoulder to see that Yang and Blake were already in uniform while Weiss was the only one in sleep clothes. "No, Ruby, I'm good. Just wanting to make sure you knew that classes are going to come around faster than you think, and I believe that you guys will want to get some breakfast. Don't spend too much time unpacking and decorating this morning."

She beamed at me. "Thanks for the advice Echo! I was thinking about getting everyone to unpack and decorate, but you're definitely right about breakfast. We just have to wait on Weiss, and we'll go on to the cafeteria!"

"No problem, Ruby. I'll meet you guys there if you get there before me. I have to put up my weapons since I didn't do so yesterday." I stepped back from the door and waved to Ruby as I moved down the hallway. She waved back merrily and shut the door. "Now to find my way to the locker rooms from here."

I pulled out my scroll and opened the map for Beacon. Trudging through the halls with my head down, I made quick progress to the place I was looking for and opened the door. The lights were off, so I turned them on, and got a good look at the room. Basic looking tiles covered the floor, some benches every now and again with drains beneath them. I went over to locker three-four-three and input the combination, shoving my equipment inside. When I shut the door, however, there was somebody else standing on the other side.

I jumped, startled because I had not heard her come in or move to my locker. "Miss Goodwitch, I didn't hear you come in."

She stood there looking at me, an icy gaze locked onto my eyes. She spoke, softly "I do try to help students in their detection abilities as much as possible. What are you doing here so early in the day? I do not have you in the rings until after lunch."

I scratched the back of my neck, chuckling nervously. "I kind of forgot to put my stuff up yesterday after initiation, and I didn't want to have to go to the room to pick it up. Better to be prepared than unprepared, and all that stuff." She didn't say anything, just deciding to keep staring at me with a raised eyebrow and a downturn of the edges of her lips. "I should go to the dining hall for breakfast. See you later Miss Goodwitch."

I hightailed it as soon as I was out of her sight and didn't stop running until I was sure she wasn't around. " _She reminds me of a porcelain doll when she does that._ "I shuddered. " _Those things seriously freak me out._ " I moved to the cafeteria slash dining hall, seeing more than a couple of students doing the same. " _Seems nobody wants to make breakfast today in the kitchenettes._ " I fell into line behind the students already there and picked up a bowl of cereal and a bowl of mandarin orange slices, with a slice of toast on the side.

Scanning the room, I spotted Team RWBY sitting down already, so I made a beeline for that table. Along the way someone stuck their foot into the aisle, and I just walked against it, knocking Cardin out of his seat. Ignoring his angry sputtering, I sat down with the four girls. "Hello all, how are your schedules today?"

Ruby started to spew out cookie bits, but stopped when Weiss glared at her. She swallowed and then stated, "Well, most of the classes we have together, except Weiss has Dust 101 and Medical Aid in the block where the rest of us have free time. What about you?"

I took out my scroll to glance at my schedule. "Same here with me and the rest of my team. Ren, Pyrrha and I have Dust 101 and Medical Aid from ten forty until twelve ten."

"It seems that you will have the same class with me. I do hope either you or Ren have knowledge with Dust and Medical practices." She spoke under her voice but I still caught it. "And I hope that you won't pester me like that idiot brother."

"No worries Ice Queen, you're not my type." I ate a few spoonsful of cereal and a few orange slices. "I know about Dust and medicine, so no worries there either."

"How did you hear me? It's extremely noisy in here." It took her a few moments before her face grew red, realizing what I had actually replied with. "What do you mean I'm not your type?!"

"To answer your first question, the headphones have sensitive mics installed and act like real cat ears. Second question, you're way too abrasive for my tastes. You act like everything is owed to you simply because that is how it has been for the largest portion of your life. You're rather inflexible and act like 'the boss', and those people just don't jive with me." Another few bites of cereal and orange slices, with a bite from the toast. "Blake is more my type than you are. She's quiet, and feels like she would actually listen to opinions instead of just putting only her options out on the table. Plus, she likes books, I like books, we could probably have times together just reading on a couch or something and not speaking to each other and I would be perfectly fine with that." I leaned towards Yang and she leaned in as well. "Plus, she got that Bellabooty and some damn fine legs."

Blake looked uncomfortable being the point of attention, Weiss looked furious with me, and Ruby just looked confused. Yang gave a hearty laugh and slapped her knee. "Oh my gosh, Echo, you're super forward. So, you appreciate the finer sex? Had some bad experience with boys and decided to bat for the other team?"

"Yeah, I like females. And no, I didn't have an experience with a boy." I rolled my eyes. "They would love to have some experiences with me, I bet. I just liked girls ever since forever, I guess." There were footsteps coming up behind me, four pair. I turned around slightly to see who it was and saw that it was the rest of my team. I scooted slightly to the side so they could all fit across from Team RWBY.

"Good morning, Snow Angel." Jaune tried to go right out the gate.

Weiss shot him down before he even got past the barrier. "No, Arc. And don't even talk to me, it is not a good time." She was still staring at me, shaking with anger.

Jaune turned to Ruby. "What happened while we weren't here?"

Yang inserted herself in the conversation. "Your sister here was just telling us about the type she likes." Jaune groaned and let his head fall on the table, nearly knocking down his glass of juice. "Vomit Boy's sister is pretty bold, saying those things right in front of Blake here. I might just have to watch her, make sure she doesn't do anything untoward my partner."

"Please, can we not talk about my sister's preferences while I'm around. I do not want to hear about it, like, at all." He got to munching on his breakfast, a plate of the crappy eggs and bacon with orange juice to drink.

"I must agree with the idiot. Let's not speak of such uncouth things at all, that includes in our dorm room." She sent a glare to Yang, who just smirked and did a half shrug.

I glanced at Blake and wiggled my eyebrows. She looked back down to her book with a light brushing of red in her cheeks. She was reading Ninjas of Love at the breakfast table, risqué Blake, risqué. The rest of breakfast was spent listening to one of Nora's tales and quiet eating from all of us. When it was fifteen minutes off from our first class, Ports, we got up and put away our trays and dishes.

"So, do you guys think Grimm studies is going to be exciting? Because I sure hope so! I can't wait to learn all about the Grimm that we're going to be facing in our time as Huntresses." Ruby looked over to Ren and Jaune. "And, uhh, Huntsmen of course. What do you think it's going to be today? Nevermore? Deathstalker? Hydra? Minotaur?"

I placed a hand on her shoulder. "I seriously doubt it's going to be anything like that for us first years, Ruby, at least for our first semester. Probably just reviews about Boarbatusks and Beowolves."

She stopped hopping and groaned. "But those aren't exciting. I want to learn something new!"

"In time Ruby, in time." We entered the room and found seats halfway up the benches, splitting into our two teams and sitting in the middle of each portion. Port was busy scribbling away at the board, making a diagram of a Beowolf next to a diagram of a Boarbatusk. Above the board he was drawing on were pencil sketches of various Grimm, with his blunderaxe sitting in the middle. Off to the right of his desk was a small golden bust of him, sitting on a small white pedestal.

Soon after we took our seats, the rest of the class funneled in, and the bell rang for the beginning of class. Port walked over to the door and shut it softly. "Good morning students, and welcome to your first class of Grimm Studies!" Be bellowed, sweeping his hand towards us all. I readied my pencil and my mind, for notes and to make sure I wasn't bored out of said mind by his tale. He launched straight into his lecture. "Monsters, Deemons, prowlers of the night! They are known by many names, Nevermore, Ursa, Deathstalker, and so on. But I, I simply refer to them as prey! Haha!"

When nobody responded, he cleared his throat. "And, uhh, so shall you all upon your graduation from this fine academy. Now, as I was saying: the world is extremely treacherous, especially outside the four kingdoms where there are less safeguards against Grimm. It is up to us as Huntsmen, and Huntresses," he turned towards Yang and gave her a wink, "to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Protect themselves from what, you may ask yourself. Why, from the very world of course." Another hearty chuckle from him. Some guy in the back stood up slightly and yelled 'Ayyyup!', and he only sat down embarrassed when the entire class had turned their attention to him.

"Yes, what you are training to become. Huntsmen and Huntresses. Now, for a tale of an extremely young, fit, handsome man. Me!" I settled in to listen to the tale

I felt a prickling on my neck, like someone was watching me intensely. I lifted my gaze up from my paper and glanced around the room, just to see nobody looking at me. They were either looking at Port, the ceiling, some notes they were trying to take, or just their desks as they rested their heads on their arms to catch some sleep. I went back to my notes.

"Now, despite smelling strongly of cabbages, my grandfather was a wise man. I looked up to him greatly when I was young. He told me 'Peter, don't you worry none about them Beowolves or nothing. As long as you believe in yourself and your natural abilities, you will be able to defeat them through sheer tenacity and grit.' Now this was a man who had ridden a Grimm stallion into combat, so he knew what he was talking about. So, I went to the village that had called for my help…" He went on and I continued with my notes.

The feeling of being watched came back, stronger than last time. My head bolted up and around, trying to catch the person who was looking at me, but it was the same case as last time. There were more people that had fallen asleep, even Pyrrha had stopped taking notes and was looking almost absently at the drawings above the board. The feeling didn't go away. I turned to the front of the class and went stock still. Port's head was turned right toward me, and I felt the gaze sharpen further even though I couldn't see his eyes.

My gaze fell back down to my notes, finishing them off with the end of his story. _"Of fucking course Ozpin would have told them. Glynda knows, Port knows, Oobleck probably knows. Does Peach know, is she part of this as well? Is the nurse?"_

I was brought out of my thoughts when Port asked the class if any of us believed we showed the true traits of a Huntsman. Weiss' hand shot up and Port laughed. "Good! We have a volunteer. If you would go get your combat gear, please." Weiss left the room and came back shortly, wearing her combat dress and carrying Myrtenaster. "Step forward and face your opponent!" Weiss took a few steps towards the shaking cage. The rest of her team was cheering her on and she snapped at them. "Alright, begin!" He brought his weapon down on the lock and the cage burst open, revealing the enraged Boarbatusk.

It snorted and charged towards Weiss, and she sidestepped it. It made a sharp turn and kept coming at her. She dodged again, this time raking her weapon against its armored side. Port was being quiet, watching in case he would have to step in to help. Ruby kept cheering for her and her attention wavered. The Boarbatusk threw its weight at her again and she tried to block the attack, but she was sent skidding back against the tiled floors. She got into a thrusting stance and dashed forward with Myrtenaster held towards the Grimm's face.

At the last moment, it turned its head to the side and got Weiss' weapon stuck between its two tusks. She had to let go to avoid being tossed by a headbutt, and her weapon went skittering against the floor. She did a roll dodge to avoid another charge from the Grimm. She rushed to her sword and picked it up. "Weiss, go for its stomach! It doesn't have any armor there!" Ruby shouted to her, wanting to be helpful.

"Would you shut up!? I'm trying to concentrate here!" The Grimm, seeing its opponent with a turned head, decided to go for an all-out attack. It jumped into the air and began to roll, and when it hit the floor it shot off towards the distracted heiress. She didn't turn in time to put up any defense and she was knocked against the seating, her sword flying off towards me.

I caught it and threw it back to her as she stood up. She looked hurt though, a few bruises beginning to form even though her aura was still active. I decided to step in because Port wasn't going to right yet. I vaulted over the desk and landed in front of the Boarbatusk. "What are you doing?!" The Grimm looked fine with the new partner it was to fight, just more to kill.

"I'm helping save your skin, Ice Queen." I lowered my stance, spreading my arms and bending my knees outwards. The Boarbatusk charged, and I caught both its tusks while absorbing its momentum, stopping it dead in its tracks. I swung it backwards over my head, slamming it into the ground and exposing its belly to Weiss. She jabbed Myrtenaster into it and it squealed as it died and then disappeared.

"Wonderful work from the two of you! We are truly in the presence of two Huntresses! Remember students, some battles will require more than one person to fight, it is why we have teams of four. If you know you cannot fight a battle yourself, do not be afraid to call for help." The bell rang and people began to rise from their seats. "Good day to you all. I will see all of you tomorrow hopefully. It seems that students contract colds the second day at beacon every year and miss my class alone."

Weiss scowled at me, then at her team before she stalked up and retrieved her notes. She stalked off, with Ruby trailing behind her. Blake and Yang just shared a glance before they too went out the door. I went to my seat and collected my stuff, ready for the Dust class. "That was awesome Echo, how you just jumped down there and faced the Boarbatusk without any weapons. You were like 'Don't worry Weiss, I will protect you. Grab, hyaa!'" Nora motioned the way I had flipped the Grimm over.

"Sure Nora. I might train you how to do that later, when you master the stu-fu." I packed my things in my messenger bag that I had found below the desk.

She tilted her head to the side. "What's stu-fu?"

"You'll know it when you learn it, my young padiwan. Let's get moving, I have Dust class in ten minutes." I was about to exit the class when I was stopped by Port.

"Excuse me Miss Arc, if I may speak to you?" My team looked to me and I waved them off. Port would most likely excuse me if I was late, he wouldn't excuse them. They left, and the door shut itself with a soft click. "Why did you help Miss Schnee? She looked like she was about to handle the fight just fine."

"She wasn't in the right mindset to fight, she was distracted. Her fighting style requires her to be wholly focused on one opponent and nothing else. That, and she's a glass cannon archetype. Her damage is high, but she can only take a few hits before her aura gets low. It gets even lower when she extensively uses her glyphs. It was already beginning to lower when she took those few hits from the Boarbatusk. I saw the bruises and decided I would step in to help, since you were obviously waiting for something to happen."

His mustache lifted slightly, and I _think_ I saw his bottom lip curve into a smile. I'm not sure, it was hard to tell for sure. "You truly have a keen mind to pick all that up in the short time you have known her, and a keen eye to spot the situation in class earlier. How would you like to participate in the next presentation we have?"

"Thank you, sir, for the complements and the offer, but I will have to decline. I simply wanted to help an acquaintance, not make myself the center of attention. I will have to make sure to keep a low profile for the rest of the day to offset this, I believe." I implied that I would have to keep a low profile all the time.

He laughed. "Of course. I know where you come from, I know people who like to keep themselves in the background and out of mind. They like to keep their secrets." The smile was still there, but the eyes were still covered by his eyebrows. I could feel the steely stare again, like he was trying to pick ne apart with the force of his mind.

"Yes, and some secrets are meant to be kept secret. So, you keep your secrets to yourself and I'll keep my secrets to myself and we'll both be happy." " _Just leave me alone and run the info to Ozpin. Leave me out of this."_

"But some secrets hurt people if they're kept secret for too long, Miss Arc." He was pushing the issue too much. He blew discretion out of the water long ago when he stared at me during class.

"I agree, but there are also secrets that cause even greater harm if they're spread to others. I would like to keep myself and the people around me safe, you understand. My brother isn't the only person I'm looking out for here." The sound of students heading to the door stopped me from saying any more. "It seems that your next class is here, sir. I hope you have a wonderful day. If you would relay what I just told you to the Headmaster, it would be greatly appreciated." The venom in my voice was nearly tangible as I walked out of that class, past the stream of second years making their way into his class.

I passed by Team CFVY, and gave them a nod. Yatsuhashi was the only one who saw me and must have thought it was a bow, and he bowed slightly. Coco asked him why he had bowed and he started to talk to her about me. I turned the corner and sprinted for my next class, just in case Port hadn't sent a message to Professor Peach. Barreling past students in the halls and burning off the energy I had gained from the fight, I made it to the classroom right before the bell rang.

I slipped in and sat down with Ren and Pyrrha, taking out a fresh sheet of paper and my pencil. After sitting there for a few minutes with nothing happening, I looked up to see that Professor Peach wasn't even in the classroom. "Hey guys, what's up? Teach not in today or something?"

Ren just shrugged and Pyrrha nodded, pointing at the bottom corner of the board. In tiny writing, it stated that we were to read pages one through thirty and write a one-page report on what we had read. I looked around and saw that some people had taken out their books and were reading quietly while some others were simply reclining and letting their seat partners do the work. That Lark guy from Cardin's team was one such person, with a Faunus classmate doing the reading and writing.

I snorted in disgust, both at his attitude and acts and the fact that the Faunus was going along with this. We are in a combat school, bullies get nowhere if you actually stop them. Velvet could probably crush, no, she could definitely crush Cardin if she wanted to, it just wasn't in her nature I guess to fight others if she really didn't need to. I let those thoughts clear themselves from my head as I took out the book and got to working on the assignment next to my teammates.

The reading was easy and the writing was twice as easy. Turns out, I had already read this book. It was one of the books that Vale library had stocked on its shelves. I went there every now and again to soak up more knowledge, when I didn't have work. These kinds of things were exciting and new to me, so I eagerly studied them, especially Dust. It made sense to study the thing I was working with daily. The second thing I focused on was history, mostly more recent stuff, not the far past.

I finished my paper and went to set it on the desk at the same time Weiss had gone up, as we were the first two to finish the assignment. She glared at me and stalked back to her seat after slamming the paper into the desk before I could place mine down. I softly let it slide on top of hers and quietly went back to my seat. The slam had caused some people to look up at the noise, but they soon went back to what they were doing before. I sat down and closed my eyes, taking deep breaths through my mouth and exhaling through my nose. Meditation through simple breathing exercises was how I calmed down most often.

I felt a tapping on my shoulder, and opened my eyes. Pyrrha pointed at her paper and asked "Do you think you could help me with this? I'm not quite sure what it's talking about here." I scooted closer to her to help her with her paper, and when I was done helping her with that portion I went over to Ren to help him with something he was having trouble putting down in words. Every now and again I would catch Weiss sending glares my way, before she snapped her head back to whatever she was focusing on at the time.

I would be ecstatic when she stopped being such a bitch. Tomorrow couldn't come quick enough. Ren and Pyrrha turned their papers in and sat down with me, quietly conversing with each other with me joining in every once and awhile. They mostly spoke about how they trained, so I didn't have much to put in there as I had trained for less time than the both of them. They seemed surprised that I had trained under Ruby's uncle, but I explained it was due to the fact that he owed my father a favor or something.

After the bell rang, I slung the bag over my shoulder and asked if they wanted me to carry their books back to the room, since I was going there to drop off my bag anyways. After lunch was Goodwitch's combat class, and we had a break period after that while the rest of our teams had this class in that block. They said yes and thanked me, handing their books over to me to put in the bag. On the way back, there was the tapping of shoes behind me. I glanced back and saw Weiss, probably putting her books back before heading to lunch. She brushed past me and sped up.

I kept my pace normal and opened my door upon reaching it. Nobody was in the room, and I placed the bag on the desk closest to the door and removed the books inside. I set them apart from each other, in stacks for each person. I then threw the bag onto the bed that Jaune and I were sharing. Making sure I had taken my scroll and put it in my pocket, I left the room. The hallways were quiet, as most students were in the mess hall. I really don't know if I want to call it mess hall or cafeteria, cause it kind of feels like both and I want to switch it every time.

As my mind debated for and against each name, my feet carried me towards my destination. It got louder the closer I got, and I was soon inside, gathering a plate of food and making my way over to our combined group table. I sat down and immediately start scarfing down the food. "Slow down there, Boarbatusk Wrestler, you're going to choke if you keep eating at that speed. I would know, Ruby caught me chocking one time." Yang said as she held up a chicken leg.

"Boarbatusk Wrestler? Really?" I had swallowed the mouthful of food before asking that. "Is that the best nickname you could come up for me?"

"Hey, it's what every other first year is calling you. It didn't start with me" She held up her hands, but the grin stayed on her face. "Besides, it's better than the nickname your brother has. That one was from me."

"Please don't tell her." He whined, putting down his sandwich.

"No need, I already know it." He looked at me then to Yang, she shook her head. "Jaune, get some motion sickness pills before you go flying again. You knew about the Arc motion sickness you should have taken some before the flight."

"Do you have any you can give to Jaune so he can go to Vale to get some?" Ruby asked, stuffing another cookie down her throat.

"No, I don't carry around motion sickness pills."

"Then don't you get motion sickness too? Why scold Jaune if you have the same problem?"

"I don't have motion sickness." Her face scrunched up in confusion and she opened her mouth to ask another question. "I'm adopted."

"Oh, that makes sense. So, where did you hear Jaune's nickname?" She tilted her head to the side and inhaled another cookie.

I glanced down at her plate and grimaced when I only saw cookies and a cup of milk. "I just know and hear things."

"So, if you know things, do you know what I'm thinking about right now?!" Nora shoved her face in my personal space and I leaned back slightly.

"Pancakes, sloths, Ren." A slight pause. "Hammer, explosions, breaking legs." She moved back to her original seat, with wide eyes.

"Wow, you're really good!" She went back to eating the stack of pancakes she had on her plate.

The stares she received lasted for a moment before everyone blinked and had a short laugh. Blake spoke up for once of her own accord. "I guess those ears aren't just for show then."

"Nah, nor are my real ears." Team RWBY looked confused, with Weiss only having a quick look on her face before she went back to ignoring me. I removed my headphones and let them rest against my neck. It felt good to have my ears out from under the ear cups. "I made the headphones years ago, and they help make me look like I'm a normal Huntress girl. They have mics in them that help pick up noise, and I can adjust how much they pick up with this little button right here." I pointed to the button.

"Awesome! Can I try them on?" Ruby was making grabbing motions at them. I rolled my eyes and tossed them over to her. She caught them and placed them on her head. "Oh wow! I can hear so much now. Is this what you hear all the time?"

"Yeah, my dad asked if I wanted to sell the design but I decided I didn't want to. It's unique and I want to keep it that way."

She awed and went back to tilting her head from side to side and spinning around to see what she could pick up. "How do you make them turn around? Like a real cat's ears?"

"Try moving your ears around. It took me some practice to do it proficiently, but it's what the sensors pick up.

The ears on top suddenly sprang to life and began twisting and turning, going straight up and then straight back. They twisted around and then stopped as Ruby took the headphones off. "That was super cool! Could you make me some? Pretty please." She went to her knees on the seat, holding her hands beneath her chin and making puppy dog eyes.

"No, Ruby, I'm not making another pair. If I may get them back please." She awed again and handed them back.

Yang had the biggest look of shock on her face. "You just said no to Ruby's puppy dog look. How? Nobody we know has been able to do that."

"I'm stone cold, my heart is a _rock_." Weiss muttered under her breath 'More like your brain is a rock, filthy Faunus'. "But in reality, I just had practice. Jaune here used to do it all the time when I came to visit from Vale." Blake was glaring at Weiss from behind her book. I turned my head towards Jaune and whispered, "Blake is getting pretty angry, huh?"

Jaune switched from looking at Weiss to looking at Blake. "Yeah, I guess. Don't know why though. Was it something you said?"

"No, nothing I said. At least, I'm pretty sure it wasn't me."

"Hey, what are you two whispering about over there? Nothing naughty I hope, leaving me out of the fun." Yang of course had to notice our whispering.

"No, we're not talking about anything naughty Yang." Jaune's face was a bright crimson and he moved away from me. "We were just talking about how Blake is bearing her fangs at Weiss right now. She seems pretty upset."

Yang turned to her partner, who had turned to her book when I whispered to Jaune. She still had a scowl on her face and flipped through a page aggressively. "Blake, you okay?" She didn't say anything and continued to read. "Wow, no need to be so _chilly_ and give me the _cold shoulder_ , that's Ice Queen's job."

"Sorry Yang, I was just thinking about something. I'm fine, just let me read while I can please. We don't have much time before we have to leave out for combat class." The group checked the time, and saw that we only had ten minutes before we had to be in class.

"Oh no! We're gonna be late again!" Ruby bolted, tray in hands. We followed after her at a slower pace. We rushed to the locker rooms, tripping over ourselves when we were putting our combat wear on. Jaune dropped Crocea Mors a few times before giving up and just holding onto it. We got into the stands right as the bell went off, signaling students to be in classes. Goodwitch strode in just a few seconds after, with a clipboard under one arm and her crop in her other hand.

"Good day students, this is your first day in combat class so we will be holding only two duels. Just for demonstration of our facilities and what to expect from now on, but if you are called up you will treat this just like a tournament style duel. You will be professional and stop when you are told to stop or disciplinary action will happen." She looked to her clipboard, looking through the students listed. "Our first match will be Ruby Rose Versus Sky lark. If you two would make your ways down here and hand me your scrolls for a moment."

Ruby zipped down there while Sky meandered down. They handed Goodwitch their scrolls and she swiped them over some sort of sensor. Their aura gauges popped up on a screen above the arena. "As you can see, your auras are projected onto the screen above us currently. It will change from green to yellow to red. When it is in the red, it is under eleven percent and that marks the end of a tournament style duel. If you cannot see the screen while in the arena please refer to your scroll to check your aura gauge. Miss Rose, please stand on that mark over there and Mister Lark stand on the mark opposite that."

She had pointed to marks on the floor, a decent amount of space between them. "There will be two ways to win a duel in this class." She pointed to the gauges. "When your opponent is in the red zone, you have won. Or, alternatively, you may send them out of the ring. This will force you to be thoughtful of your surroundings and reposition if you are moving too close to the edge. The duel will start as soon as I am out of the ring, prepare yourselves." She moved to the edge of the arena and opened a seam in the wall, pressing something on the other side of the wall. "You may now begin."

Ruby went straight for the offensive, and Sky didn't have time to react. She used her semblance to burst towards his location and snagged Crescent Rose on his neck, dropping his aura to under fifty percent and flinging him into the wall. Cardin huffed, annoyed that his lackey had been beat by this little girl, and so handily at that.

Glynda stepped into the ring while helping Sky up with a wave of her crop. "Thank you, Miss Rose, for demonstrating the ring out. Though next time be aware that your move would be harmful for you if your opponent was able to react in time, as they could dodge your strike and simply hold their weapon out, badly damaging you and receiving no injury themselves. Mister Lark, work on your reaction times and do not underestimate your opponent. Many Huntsmen and Huntresses have lost because they believed they were better than their opponents."

Ruby and Sky made their way back to the stands. Ruby was bouncing at her victory. She was speaking a mile a minute to Yang, who was happy that her sister had gotten to show off her skills on the first day. Sky simply got a smack to the back of his head, courtesy of Cardin, dropping his aura down by another two percent. Glynda stared at Carding and he huffed, looking away from the irate professor. She looked own to her clipboard again. "Our last match will be Echo Arc versus Cardin Winchester."

Cardin smirked, hefting his mace onto his shoulder. He pointed at me and held his thumb down. I ignored him mostly and made my way down to the arena floor, handing my scroll to Goodwitch so she could scan it. I moved to my mark on the floor before Cardin got out of the stands, and he handed his scroll over to her before moving to his mark. "You're going down Arc. You made a fool of me earlier."

I feigned a surprised look. "Oh, did I? I don't remember doing such a thing. The only thing I remember is nudging something with my foot and a commotion behind me." He snarled, bringing his mace down to smack into his hand in what he thought looked menacing but it just looked ridiculous. His face was scrunched up and wrinkly looking. I dropped my axe and swords, kicking them over to the edge of the ring. I got into a modified thrower's stance, both hands moving to curled claws with one at waist height and the other hovering to the right of my chin.

"You think you can beat me without weapons? Dang, you're stupider than I thought. It must run in the family." He pointedly looked at Jaune, who just shrank in on himself.

"Enough small talk, Winchester." Goodwitch moved from the ring and pressed the button again. As soon as she called for the match to begin, Cardin rushed towards me with his mace held above his head. I dodged the strike that landed on the floor and brought my heel into the back of his knee. He stumbled forward and caught himself before he fell over.

"Don't move and fight me seriously!" He ran at me again, this time with the mace swinging horizontally. I stepped under the swing and before he could react jammed the heel of my palm into his chin, lifting him off the floor slightly. I back stepped twice out of his reach, and he rubbed at his chin as a bruise started to form. "Oh, you're going to pay for that twerp." This time, he didn't rush at me, he slowly inched towards me while holding his mace in front of him.

I saw his finger twitch to the button on his mace and he dropped it. "Oops." I lunged forward, catching the mace before it hit the floor and I brought it up into his chin. The Dust charge inside activated and sent him flying upwards, and when he started falling back down after impacting the ceiling I held the mace like a baseball bat.

"Batter up!" When he was in my sight, I swung, not bothering to press the button. The mace connected with his chest plate and he went sailing towards the gathered students. He impacted the forcefield and slid to the ground, both in the red zone and out of the ring. The crowd went wild, most of them saying this was what they wanted to see out of the first fight.

Goodwitch stepped into the ring and helped Cardin to his feet. "Another good fight. Mister Winchester, I implore you to not rush into a battle like you did. Also, attempts to rile the opponent can be effective, but if they do not work the first time I suggest you do not try to continue. I suggest you go to the forge to get that dent removed from your armor." He took his chest piece off and snatched his mace from my hands before stalking out of the room. "Miss Arc, while you fought well, there is one thing I must remind you of."

"Do not underestimate my opponent?" She stopped when I pulled that out. "I didn't underestimate him. I simply removed my other two weapons as they would not help me fight him at the moment. The swords give me reach yes, but they are less precise than my hands alone. Jolder is when I have my semblance ready. I backed out of his strike zone when I had hit him, giving myself ample time to react to any retaliation in case he recovered faster than I thought he would. I'm sure we both know what happens when you underestimate somebody, Goodwitch."

She caught my omission of the prefix, and her eyes narrowed. "Yes, we do Arc. You may return to your seat." I returned to my team after retrieving my weapons. "Now that the demonstration is over, please show your teams your weapons and tell them about your fighting style. As I am sure everyone had heard by now, Vale and Beacon will be hosting the Vytal Tournament this year, and we want to make sure everyone involved is as ready for it as they can be. This means both individuals and teams."

Every team grouped up, making small pockets of whispering. I blocked my team out and started to listen to the other teams, to pick up their fighting styles since I already knew about mine and Ruby's team. It seems this year that most of the teams are lightweights in terms of how much damage they can receive, with Cardin's team being one of the ones where they have two heavy weights on their team. The armor they all wear must help in some cases, I guess. It makes them slower though. I chimed it when it was my turn and then went back to listening.

Once they had all stopped talking about weapons and fighting styles, talk turned to school and life before Beacon. I was picking up some juicy secrets, nothing life threatening. I made sure to tuck those away for later perusal, in my _memory banks._ Yang's head shot up and her gaze zeroed in on me, like she could tell I made a pun. I just nodded and she gave me a thumb up. Note to self, her pun powers are too strong, do not make puns in her vicinity if you do not want her to know about them.

Class finished up and everyone put their stuff up, switching back to their uniforms. Pyrrha and Ren decided to head to the library to do some reading while I decided to head back to the room for a shower. Jaune and Nora had to go to class, and I wished Jaune luck with the assignment. He groaned and held his hands to the sky, like he was asking some deity why he had drawn the short straw in life. _"That's what you get for not studying dear brother, and for forging transcripts."_

0-0

Glynda was not a happy person. _"That girl had the gall to use double meaning in a conversation with me! And she left out my prefix, she didn't even call me Professor! Ooh, when we kick her out, I will take a picture of the look on her face!"_ She was riding the elevator to Ozpin's office, sitting at the top of Beacon tower. The door slid open when the elevator stopped, and she stepped out to a strange sight.

Ozpin was sitting at his desk, with little figurines. They appeared to be figurines of the students? Nikos was standing next to Mister Arc, while Valkyrie was standing next to Lie. Miss Arc was off to the side, by herself. Team RWBY had been split into their pairs and he was holding Scarlatina in his left hand while his other held Alistair. "Ozpin, what are you doing?"

He dropped the figures on his desk and then swept them all into a box sitting on the floor beside the desk. "I have no idea what you speak of, Glynda. I wasn't doing anything before you came in." Her eyes moved down to the box, still in sight beside his desk. He kicked it under his desk, hiding it from view. His hand went for his mug. "I believe you have something to tell me about regarding our student?"

Glynda stood up straighter, forcing herself to forget about what she just witnessed. "Yes sir. She soundly beat Mister Winchester without the use of her weapons, instead choosing to use his own against him. She recognized that it was activated when Mister Winchester pressed a button on his mace, and she caught it before it hit the floor then hit him in the head with it. It leads me to believe that she investigated him before her entrance to Beacon, as she would not know about this otherwise. She did not see Mister Winchester fighting in the forest, and there were no other times she could have witnessed him fighting." She pressed a few buttons on her scroll. "The video was just sent to you."

He pulled it up on his screen, watching as Echo did exactly what Glynda had said. He watched as they exchanged words, but he couldn't hear what they said. "What else did you learn about her?"

"She knows that you have asked us to keep an eye on her. I do not know if it was Peter who told her or tipped her off, but I know for sure it was not me. She told me that we need to not underestimate her."

Ozpin nodded, sipping at his mug. "Indeed, she is shaping up to be quite the wildcard in this deck." He pressed a button on his desk and brought up a direct call to Dr. Oobleck.

"Yes sir, what can I do for you at this time. All you have to do is give the order and I will follow it! Unless it involves decimating the student body in order to summon an old god that will bring this land to its knees." This was all said in the span of two seconds and Ozpin had to go through it in his head to pick out what the eccentric professor had said.

"Nothing that excessive, Doctor. I simply called you to inform you to ignore Miss Arc for today when she enters your class. She has picked up that I asked you to watch her, and having you ignore her will possibly make her believe that you are not in on our plans."

"Capital! Wonderful thinking there, Ozpin! This is why you are the headmaster, coming up with such wonderful plans. Just like a commander on the field of battle! Like the battle of…" He rambles on a bit about history, and successful battles where the leader had made a decisive victory for their forces. "I will do just that. Good day, Headmaster!" he hung up and Ozpin took a long draught of his coffee.

"I always feel tired whenever I listen to that man talk." Glynda couldn't help but agree. It was like that man was always on a sugar rush, enhanced by how much caffeine consumed daily. He got results, however, and that's what really mattered here. "Thank you for this information, Glynda. I will not keep you any longer as you should head to your next class."

"Of course, Ozpin. Have a good day." Glynda walked back to the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor. Before the doors closed she saw Ozpin pull out the box he had kicked, and he picked up the figure of Miss Arc.

"What secrets do you hide, bat orphan?"

0-0-0

My spine tingles, like someone made a reference to Batman. Or to me being an orphan. Or maybe somebody was making taquitos and didn't offer me any. The list goes on, but I won't put any more of it in. It is quite extensive why my spine might tingle like that. I dress once again in my uniform and make my way to Oobleck's class, with my trusty bag in hand. I wonder if it was just me who found a bag today or if others found useful objects just laying around.

I really hoped that we started off with history that wasn't ages past. Screw that old stuff, the history of yesterday is where it's at. The Great War and all that jazz. I knew about that, I could probably write a whole paper on just that. My ramblings distracted me all the way to the classroom, where I entered as the first student in. I took a front row seat and got my stuff ready. These classrooms were really quiet without anybody else in them, it's kind of creepy.

The halls filled up once the dismissal bell rang and people started to flood into the room. The rest of my team sat behind me, except for Jaune who sat next to me. It was just a few seconds before the second bell rang that Doctor Oobleck appeared in the room.

"Good afternoon students. I am Doctor Oobleck and I will be your History of Remnant professor for your next four years here at Beacon and I hope that you will be able to excel in my class. I am sure everyone is here so I will forgo doing attendance and just start up with the lesson. There will be a PowerPoint with this lecture, and there will be some PowerPoints with future lectures, but I will mostly be verbally giving you information so I hope you will be writing notes down diligently."

Oh gods, this man was too fast. I caught what he was saying, but it took me half a second after he stopped speaking to fully process his words. It was like those walls of text that had terrible punctuation because they had been input as speech to text and the person speaking hadn't bothered to put in any punctuation. It almost sounded like he didn't even breathe.

"Today we will be going over ancient history, just so that we can get it out of the way to get to more recent events. You will not be needing your books for today but I suggest that you read up on the topic when you get free time later today after dinner." A student held up their hand and Oobleck pointed at them. "Yes, Mister Slate, what is it?"

"Is it possible to repeat what you just said? I didn't really catch most of it."

"Of course not. Pay attention, I have much to cover and only a limited amount to do so. Nothing will be repeated, just like history that should not repeat." He brought down the projector, turning it on as it came down. "The oldest ruin on Remnant is believed to be over one hundred thousand years old, and it was found in the caves of Mistral. Completely protected from wind and rain, it was kept preserved when the early people of Mistral discovered it." He showed a picture and my pencil dropped from my hand in my surprise.

It was Greek and Roman architecture mashed together, no doubt about it. The pictures drawn on the rough stone depicted green and blue fire and great bronze creations.


	7. Chapter 6- Compromise

**Reviewer Acknowledgement**

 **Guest 3- Thank you for the complement and I will continue to try my best!**

0-0-0

What the absolute heck was I looking at right now? How did these things get to Remnant? Was Remnant just Earth but in the future, or were those just transported to Remnant some point in the past? "As you can see, these murals show of some age in the past, that the Mistralians built their culture around. Simple but powerful pillars, bronze masterpieces and the fire that burns distinct colors. There have been no other ruins like this found anywhere else on Remnant, but other ruins have been found, each in some sort of cave or natural barrier that preserve them."

He changed slides, and this time it showed a street in the darkness of a cave lit up by spotlights powered by generators. It looked like some sort of street one would walk down in Europe. There was a jagged edge where it just stopped, the buildings being cut in half along those areas. It wasn't even like there used to be rocks there, it just ended. _"So, they were transported. Good to know. There's no other way the cut could be that clean if it was just shifting of the continents."_

"This street was found right here in Vale. Historians today are still trying to decipher the language used on the signs. It is theorized that this building," another slide change, "is some sort of place of worship for the goddess of coffee. These numbers on the side of this board must be the verse numbers. I, as well as many others, have tried to discover what exact wisdom one would get from a goddess of coffee other than getting the perfect brew."

I tried to stifle my laughter, and ended up going into a coughing laughing fit. It was a Starbucks, with a faded green logo, and the menu below it. When the rest of the class woke up from their tired stupor of trying to listen to Oobleck to look at me, I just couldn't hold it back anymore. I fell out of my chair and started laughing full out. "Is there something you find amusing about this, Miss Arc? You are currently laughing at years of scientific theory." He takes a sip from his cup.

I reign in my laughter and hold my hand up to hold off any other question before I get my breath back. I stand up and take my seat again. "I'm sorry Doctor, it's just…" The serious look on his face, oh gods, I just can't take it. I burst out laughing again. "Oh gods! The coffee goddess! The perfect brew! My sides! Jaune, when I die from laughter, I'm going to have the sickest six pack!" I rolled on the ground, unable to stop.

"Uh, Echo, you can't die from laughter… can you?" He looked to Pyrrha for an answer, but she just shrugged. She was wondering what the sister of their leader was doing. Had she lost her mind?

Oobleck zipped over to the spot where I had been sitting. "Miss Arc. This is a very serious matter! If you do not stop laughing and get back to your notes…" He trailed off, staring at my notes. He picked up the paper and spun around, comparing my writing to the picture still up. He picked me up and shoved my notes in may face. "What is this!? How do you know a dead language?"

"Coffee goddess! I can't even right now!" I couldn't stop laughing. Scientists and historians thought a Starbucks was a place of worship. Maybe for college students that had a paper due at eight in the morning. "The great coffee goddess demands a sacrifice of a cream and five sugars!"

"Mister Arc, do you understand any of this?" Oobleck shoved my notes in Jaune's face. "Do you understand what your sister is saying?"

Jaune looked freaked out, his eyes darting from side to side as he tried to find a way out of the situation. Students were now staring at him, the professor was in his face, and his sister was out for the count. "No sir? I looked in her diary once and it looked just like that though?"

Oobleck's attention came back to me, the wheezing one. "It's a journal… Jaune. Not a diary!" I was trying to catch my breath, dots dancing in my vision now. I took a few deep breaths. My lungs filled normally again after a few seconds of controlled breathing and the dots went away. "Diaries are what little naïve girls write in, journals are for important notes and findings."

"Miss Arc, are you telling me that you have an entire journal full of the old language? This could finally break the barrier! The books we found, the information that could be gathered! It would be the breakthrough of the century! You must let me see your journal and instruct me on the old language."

I froze. Oobleck wanted to see my journal, the one that _everything_ was written in. He didn't know how to read English, but he wanted to learn it. While reading the journal. " _There is no way that is happening. My secrets are mine to keep._ " "Nope!" I popped the 'p' at the end, and his face twitched.

"Excuse me, Miss Arc, did you just deny me the information to unlock years of knowledge?" He was shaking, either from anger or the rushing blood in his coffee stream.

I tilted my head to the side like I was in deep thought, bringing my hand to my chin. "Hmmm, yes!"

He let me go, and just stood there vibrating for a second before he sped off through the door. Like, he didn't even open the door, he just bust a hole through it that looks like his outline. I sat back down, to finish my notes.

"What… what just happened?" Pyrrha asked, a clear sign of shock on her face.

"The coffee goddess, Pyrrha, the coffee goddess." I placed my hand on her shoulder and nodded sagely before putting my notes away, leaning back in my chair, and whistling a tune.

0-0

Ozpin was annoyed. It was nearly time for classes for the day to be over when Bartholomew zipped into his office, completely forgoing taking an elevator. He looked even more haggard than usual, his shirt was fully untucked, his hair was even more wild and had some split ends, and he now had a coffee stain on his right breast. Ozpin had been doing some more… work with the figures he had, holding up Winchester to Miss Arc before tossing Winchester back into the box.

Oobleck ignored the figures and slammed his hands into the desk, nearly smashing the Jaune figure. "I demand that you order Miss Arc to tell us her secrets! The very future of science depends on her knowledge!"

Ozpin simply raised an eyebrow. "I believe I told you to ignore her for today?"

"Yes, you did, but she caused a disruption in class and it would have been odd had I not intervened. But that is not the most important part of this! No! It is that she has a journal full of the old language and she denied me the opportunity to read it and learn! The audacity of her, the nerve! Denying me the opportunity to finally learn of the ruins found around Remnant! She laughed at the goddess of coffee, Ozpin, so much that she fell to the floor in fits!"

Ozpin was shocked. How could anyone laugh at the goddess of coffee? She was the almighty bringer of the perfect brew! It didn't compute in his head and he just sat there looking at Oobleck in shock. "Yes, exactly my reaction! Again, I say that you must order her to tell us her secrets! The world must know!"

"Doc… Bart, did you make your special brew?" Ozpin had to know, because Oobleck always went bizarre when he drank his special brew.

"No, I just made the normal brew! You know that I would not make the special brew for this when I need to be at peak performance levels!" Oobleck was shaking once more.

"I will inform Glynda that we need to speak with Miss Arc tonight. Be here at seven. Bring the lamp." Oobleck simply nodded and bolted off down the elevator shaft. Ozpin looked at the Echo figure in his hand. "You will tell us your secrets. Nobody ridicules the coffee goddess." A press of the button on his desk again, and Glynda picked up on the second ring.

"Yes, Ozpin?"

"Bring Miss Arc to my office after dinner. We must get to the bottom of this now." His eyes sharpened behind his glasses, telling her the importance of this.

"But sir, today you told us to…" She trailed off when she saw just how serious Ozpin was right now. She cleared her throat. "Of course, sir, it will be done."

"Inform Port as well, he will be required." She nodded and the call ended.

Now Ozpin was left with the ticking of the gears and his mug of coffee, thinking about how they would extract the wildcard's secrets.

0-0-0

"So, what was that back there? The whole 'coffee goddess thing'?" We had gotten out of class without Oobleck coming back and dropped our things off at our room, and were now heading to dinner.

"I have no clue what you're talking about Jaune." I decided to ignore his question. "I just find it funny that you would tell him about my journal. A man is holding me up and you don't tell him to let go of your sister, not very chivalrous of you."

He paled. "I didn't know what to say! He's a professor and people were staring!"

Pyrrha put a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe instead of telling the whole class about her private journal, you should have said something else? Asked Professor Oobleck to put your sister down as well?"

He grumbled unintelligible words and skulked at the back of our group. "Well, no turning back time I guess. Hindsight is twenty-twenty as they say. Let's just eat dinner so we can get to having fun!" Nora was hanging around Ren's shoulders. "But still, that was pretty funny! Did you see the look on his face when you said 'Nope!'"

I chuckled and we entered the hall. "Yeah, that was pretty good. Almost as good as the time I went to the store and bought three tubs of ice cream and ten cans of mandarin oranges." Everyone just looked at me and I picked up a plate of food. "What? It was that time, you know." Everyone nodded in understanding.

When we made it to our table, Cardin was waiting on us. "I have beef with you Arc!"

Jaune 'eeped' and hid behind Pyrrha. I rolled my eyes. "Seriously Winchester? I just want to eat. Don't you have anything better to be doing right now than bothering me and my team?" A few of the people around us laughed at this and he grimaced, walking off with his buddies. "Bye bye, Cardin! Have a nice night." I sat down and started on my food. "What a nice dude, keeping my seat warm for me."

"You should probably not have done that." Ren, your words of wisdom are not necessary here.

"Nah, he needs to see that I won't bow to his intimidation tactics. I've seen plenty of people like him on the streets of Vale, and in the alleyways. They always seem to find the people they find weak and just relentlessly torture them. Usually it's Faunus, where they feel they cannot retaliate because it would paint them as a White Fang member or supporter." Blake stiffened up slightly at the mention. "It's best to shut him down early, nip the problem in the butt."

"So I see. I will bear that in mind the next time something like this happens." Ren was eating a salad with pieces of grilled chicken in it, a cup of tea as his drink.

"So instead of breaking their legs, you break their wills?" Nora looked excited.

I was almost finished with my food. "Yeah, basically. He's going to hold a petty grudge against me most likely, probably for a few months until he sees just how stupid it is and cleans up his act to be like a true Huntsman." I finished off my last bite. "Instead of attacking him with weapons, I'm attacking him with words. I can be pretty good at it, if I do say so myself."

The clacking of heels sounded behind me and I knew who it was. _"Trying to sneak up on me in a hall full of eating students huh? Nice try, they stop being loud when you pass by and your heels make a distinctive noise when they strike the ground."_

"Miss Arc, the Headmaster would like to see you in his office." She held her crop in her hand instead of it being at the holster on her side.

"Okay, thanks for telling me. I'll be there in a few minutes." I picked up my stuff and went to put it away, calling back to the group. "Headmaster wants me. Probably wants to get inside my _head_." Grumbles from everyone but Yang. Glynda was following behind me. "I know the way to the elevators, Miss Goodwitch, no need to escort me."

"He specially asked that I made sure you got there without any distractions." Her hand tightened on the crop ever so slightly. We walked in silence some more, with the only noise in the air being her heels on the floor.

"So, great first day huh? Anything exciting happen?" She stayed quiet, and I weaved my head to the sides. "Wow, just trying to make small talk. Break the awkward silence, you know." She didn't say anything. "Okay then, I'll just shut up I guess."

We entered the elevator and she pressed the top button. I had the strong urge to just press every other button, but shoved it down. Curse my childish tendencies, even at the ripe mental age of forty-one I still had to quell them. About halfway through, the elevator stopped and dropped into pitch black. I dropped, and it proved to be a good choice as Goodwitch had tried to slam me against the wall with her crop. "I'm too young and pretty to die at the hands of an old woman!"

A tic appeared on her face and she used her semblance to catch me in the darkness, slamming me against the wall until I blacked out. When I came to, I was cuffed to a chair with a pounding headache. _"Why the hell did I not use my semblance to negate the impacts? Am I just selectively stupid?"_ A light was shone in my face, and I squinted to try and see past it. There was Goodwitch, angling the light towards my face.

"I must have been horribly cruel to puppies in a past life if you're what greets me in hell." She slammed her crop on the table and I shut up. _"Okay brain, no funnies right now. This is serious,_ _ **SERIOUS**_ _."_ I played that scene from SpongeBob in my mind.

"I suggest you tell us what you know Miss Arc. We are no longer in the mood to play around."

"Us? Play around? Is this some kind of intervention or something, because I swear I'm not addicted to any drugs and I'm not an alcoholic or anything. And you guys have only known me for, what, like two days? A week and two days counting the first time I met you and Ozzy?" And there's the tic again. "Hey, um, quick question. Is there a bathroom somewhere nearby? I kind of have to go."

"No, there is not a bathroom nearby! I believe you fail to see the gravity of the situation you're in right now!" Her hand was gripping the table now, bending the thick steel.

"Gravity? You mean how you used gravity to slam me into the elevator walls?" I cracked my neck. "Because let me tell you, that kind of hurt. More emotionally than physically because I blacked out, but you know, what can ya do about it." I thought about it for a second. "Well, you could have just not done it in the first place, but eh, hindsight is twenty-twenty."

Goodwitch was close to a breakdown, I could tell. A door I hadn't previously seen opened and Port came walking in. "Glynda, dear, you should probably leave and calm yourself. You're not doing yourself any favors by getting angry." She took his advice, leaving the room and slamming the door behind her. "How are you Miss Arc? I hope that Glynda didn't rough you up too much! You're already one of my favorite students!"

"Are we seriously doing the bad cop good cop routine right now? I don't know about you, but I have never seen that work outside of a cop movie, not once. It's usually Bad Cop, then Worse Cop, then Neutral cop that gets the criminal to crack and spill the Cheetos. Flaming hot Cheetos to be precise. I could really go for some right now, even though I just had dinner. It must be a response to being knocked out, the desire for something spicy. But not just spicy-spicy, but spicy with flavor. I cannot stand spicy foods that only are spicy, it defeats the purpose of eating, don't you agree?"

"Of course! You must savor the flavor of excellent food when you eat, not just be put off by how spicy something is. But you are trying to distract me! Do not think I didn't see your ways!" He brushed at his moustache with his fingers. "If you speak of what you know now, we can leave this all behind us and laugh when we look back on this."

I sealed my lips and shook my head. He tried a few more times to get me to speak, even trying intimidation. Thing is, when he was trying, he looked kind of like an angry walrus, so that failed. He huffed and the door opened again, he swapped out with the person who walked in. She was short, about my height, and had a pair of cute tiger ears on her head. "Oh my gosh, look at those ears!" I was bouncing up and down in my seat.

"Umm, could you tell us your secrets please?" The unknown person asked, holding a clipboard to her chest.

"You may be cute, but you will not make me spill my deepest darkest secrets that I used to dress Jaune in women's clothing, telling him it would help him understand lady troubles." " _Wait, what did I just say?"_ "I swear that I did not actually do that, that was the rest of my sisters. I wouldn't do that to Jaune, he's my bro." I had no idea what was going on, until I saw the unknown person's fingers tapping against her clipboard. She was using her semblance! I clamped my mouth shut, and thought of doggos and puppers and stupid cat videos. Anything to take my mind off the person standing in front of me.

"Professor Peach, I do not believe you are going to get any further than that. She is adamant about keeping her secrets." Oobleck was in the room now, speaking to the one now known to me as Professor Peach. "I will attempt to get her to speak, you may return to your studies." She left without another word and Oobleck slammed his hands on the table. "TELL ME YOUR SECRETS!"

"Calm down Caboose. Do I need to tell Sheila you're shouting again? Maybe Crunchbite?"

"Oh, please no! Not Crunchbite! He would be severely disappointed in me. I'll do anything!" He was down on his knees, pleading with me.

"If you stop trying to get my secrets and me Lucky Charms I won't tell him." He frantically nodded and zipped out of the room. "Ozpin, this is way too freaking simple. Send in a real challenge."

His voice came over the intercom. "I plan on it. He simply hasn't arrived yet. Give it a few minutes." A few minutes pass and Qrow walks in the room, drinking from his flask and smelling even more of cheap booze than the last time I had seen him.

"Kid, what the heck are you doing down here? I got a call saying something about an interrogation or something." He plopped his butt down in the chair across from me and leaned back.

"Yeah, apparently I'm hiding supper dark secrets that Ozpin and Oobleck want to know. Everyone else they sent to me just failed, Oobleck lasting the shortest." I looked down to his flask. "You willing to share some of that? I was kind of knocked out to be brought here. Goodwitch thought it would be good to slam me into the elevator walls in the dark."

"No way, get your own booze. You shouldn't even be drinking, you're like, what, fifteen?" Another swig down the gullet.

"Sixteen, I'm older than Ruby remember." I rattled the cuffs. "And I can't really get up to get my own booze, so yeah."

"Sounds like you're shit out of luck then. They already bring in Peach?" I nod and he shakes his head. "Yeah, then I can't really do anything here. She's the best we have at interrogation, but she's kind of soft. Doesn't want to hurt students, but her semblance is pretty strong. You must have pushed through it or something?"

"Yeah, just thought of some stupid cat videos and stuff. She got something out of me, but I'm pretty sure that it wasn't what they wanted to hear."

"Oh, what was it then?"

"Pretty sure they're recording this or something, just watch that." He nodded and took a swig. "So, are you just going to sit here now and look at me until Oz walks in to try his hand at this or what?"

"Pretty much, squirt. Or you could just tell me what you know and you could go back to your team."

"Nah, I'm good. This seat is actually more comfortable than the one I sat in at the police station, if you can believe that. Even the cuffs don't detract from it! I might just fall asleep here or something if I get tired enough. Remember that time you found me sleeping on my sword in the workshop when you came to train me? Good times."

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say." He pulled out his scroll and started to play a game on it. It was one of those 2-D fighter games like the one he plays with Yang and Ruby. We sat there in silence for a while, me trying to find the most comfortable spot on the chair and him playing his game.

I shifted in my seat when I felt another pinching in my lower abdomen. "Hey Qrow?"

"Hmm?"

"Is there a bathroom nearby?"

"Yeah, there's one just down the hall. Why?"

"I think you know why, smart aleck."

He paused his game and looked up at me. "Surely you can't be serious?"

I gazed back at him and put on my most straight-laced face. "I am serious, and don't call me Shirley."

"Just hold it in. Or you can just tell us what you know and you can go?"

I quietly growled. "Qrow, I cannot just hold it in. Unless it hasn't dawned on you at this point, I am a female and do not have a dick. Holding in pee is slightly harder when you have less tubing." I shifted again, trying to hold in the liquid.

"Maybe you should have been born with a bigger bladder then. This just gives you more incentive to talk." He was leaning forward now, that dumb smirk on his face.

I frowned. "Do you guys have secret janitors or something? Someone who cleans up down here, or do you do it yourselves?"

"We do it ourselves, mostly Oz I guess. Why do you ask?"

"No reason, just wondering. Think I can get my uniform cleaned easily?"

Realization dawned on his face. "Oh, don't you dare."

"Oh, I will dare."

He squinted at me, looking me dead in the eyes. "You're lying."

I stared right back. "Am I Qrow, am I? I'm pretty sure Ozpin would make you clean it up, too. Since you're already in here and all."

"You're really pushing your luck here kid. That said, I really don't want to deal with that." He stood up and produced an electronic key from his pocket, imputing a code and swiping it across the cuffs holding my hands to the chair. As soon as they slipped off the chair he double cuffed me. "Not going to take any chances. Badwitch is already going to be furious that I'm doing this.'

The door opened when he and I approached it, letting us out into the hallway. He practically dragged me to the end of the wide hall, as I was taking in the sights. He shoved me into the small bathroom and shut the door on me. A quick glance showed me that there was no possible way out besides the door, which was being guarded by Qrow. A steel toilet and steel sink, with toilet paper and paper towels next to each.

I dropped my skirt, spats, and underwear and sat on the cold toilet bowl, relieving myself with a sigh. Man, that was close! I finished, wiped, and flushed, pulling my lower clothes back up and walking over to the sink. There was only a cold-water tap, but it was better than scalding I guess, and I washed up then dried my hands on a paper towel that I stuffed into my pocket. "Done!"

Qrow opened the door and led me back to the interrogation room, and Ozpin was now waiting inside. "Thank you Qrow, if you would stay." Qrow just nodded and sat me down, locking my arms to the chair again. He moved to stand behind Ozpin, shaking his flask to see how much drink he had left. He grimaced and put it back on his hip, obviously running low.

Ozpin stayed locked on me. "You have proved to be a tough case to crack, Miss Arc. I would hate to get someone involved if I don't have to, they're rather excessive with their skills. I simply tell this to you now so that you may come clean. Tell us what you know, and you won't be harmed."

"You going to sick Jimmy on me? Dang Ozpin, that's cold. I thought you were cool man, but here you are saying you're going to bring Metal Dick here." Qrow nearly spat out a mouthful he had gotten from his flask, probably the last good bit of alcohol he had left on him.

"And there you go again, trying to distract us. How do you know I was talking about General Ironwood?" He steepled his fingers.

"You were talking about Ironwood? I was talking about something else." Qrow was silently laughing behind Ozpin, who had a look on his face like he didn't want to be here.

"We could throw you out of the kingdom, you know? Kick you from Beacon, away from your team, away from your friends and family." He was trying his own intimidation.

I knew this wouldn't work though. "Oh, so you want to send me out into the wilderness. And not keep an eye on me except when I go around cities? Man, they would have a field day with me. And when it came to bite you, what would you ask yourself? 'Was kicking her out of Beacon and the cities really for the greater good?' or 'Oh gods, why did we practically hand her to them?' Those two work pretty well. Then my family would come asking what had happened to me and you would have to tell them the truth or lie to their faces."

"Why are you pushing so hard against us? What is your angle? What do you get out of this?" He hadn't moved an inch. His fingers were still steepled and his face had become neutral again.

"Not getting burned to a crisp? Protection through anonymity? I just don't want to be caught up in this mess? Take your pick Ozpin. They find I'm giving you info, they come after me when we least expect it. You put me in danger simply bringing me down here. I put myself in danger talking to you in front of the statue this morning. One is worse, the other one being slightly better."

"You put yourself in danger when you chose this profession, Miss Arc. As you stated, it's not only Grimm we fight against."

"Yes, but I have not gotten strong enough for what is coming. You think that a first year in Beacon can handle it? Without losing something important? Their very life? This fight you are in is expensive, not just in terms of money." I nodded over to Qrow. "One of yours has already failed, and look where we are now. You're interrogating a sixteen-year-old girl in Beacon's basement where a half dead lady is stuck inside a preservation chamber. Half her powers are gone and you're doing everything you can just scrambling to keep her alive long enough to find a candidate that might, I repeat might, be able to take the powers."

"I know. We have made mistakes, and we will make many more. But with your help, we can minimize them, reduce the casualties. I implore you, help us." He looked straight into my eyes, a glint of something hidden deep inside.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It really wasn't worth the effort I was putting into it and I was mostly wasting time they could be using to track people down. I decided to give them something, at least. "Fine. I'll tell you what I know. But not what my journal says, that stays private and Oobleck will not receive know how to read English." His brow went up. "Can I get the cuffs off, at the very least?" Ozpin nodded to Qrow and he fully removed the cuffs this time.

"You may start whenever you're ready." He nodded over to the mirror.

This was making me mentally tired, and it was only like seven forty if the clock was to be believed. "The White Fang. I followed some leads I found while avoiding some of their goons that were tailing me, and found out that they're working with Torchwick. Not of their own accord, though. They're under the thumb of some lady in a red dress, has a semblance for creating onyx or obsidian or something like that." Qrow stood taller at the mention of that. "She's being flanked by this girl that has a projection semblance or something, makes people think they're seeing and hearing things that aren't real."

"So that's why I couldn't see their faces. I knew something was up. Why didn't she just make me think they weren't there? Why only hide their faces?"

"I believe it was because of how focused and trained you are. She could also have limits based on her aura and concentration. More complex illusions cost more aura and deeper concentration? Anyways, the last person is a guy, has gun boots and is a trained assassin. Trained by his dad or something. They're both following her because they owe her something, but the girl follows her more… fanatically? She took her off the streets, gave her purpose. The lady simply gave the guy money and a way to keep walking, even though he had completely decimated his legs."

"This is good information, more than Qrow has managed to pull up. How did you come across this?"

"Taking off my headphones, dyeing my hair, getting my hands on a White Fang mask. They've been doing some extensive recruitment lately. Taurus was in Vale recently, looking for someone he said. I think it's Blake. But enough on that. For the queen, all I know is she's somewhere in the Grimmlands. She has one of the headmaster's as an ally, probably due to some form of blackmail or promise of power. I can give a few names that I do know. Dr. Merlot, Tyrian, Hazel, Watts. They're working for her."

Ozpin was looking ever grimmer with my lists. "This is more serious than we thought. Do you know where any of these people may be?"

"The only information I could pick up was on Merlot. He's on an island somewhere off the coast. The connecting tunnel to the mainland is somewhere in Mountain Glenn. He's making some sort of enhancement? I don't know what for, but it sounds powerful." I thought on what other info I could give them. "I know for sure that they intend on sabotaging the CCT at some point, most likely a busy point of the year where they can get in and out without being recognized and then slip back into the population with an alibi."

He gave a pointed look to the glass and it became transparent, showing the other professors. "Everyone, I believe we will have much to do in the following months. Glynda, if you could take Miss Arc back to her team." She nodded and left the other room, entering the interrogation room.

I got up and made to leave before saying one more thing. "And Ozpin, I'm nearly one-hundred-percent sure I saw the woman on that Bullhead with Roman. She knows mine and Ruby's faces."

"Then we will look after Miss Rose as well." He handed me my scroll. I hadn't even noticed that it had been gone honestly. "There is a code on your scroll that will allow you access to this level of Beacon. Only come here when you need it and you know for absolute sure you are not being followed. Am I clear enough on this?"

"Yes, sir. Only when needed and make sure I have no tail." He let me go, to follow after Goodwitch. Qrow came with us. "What are you going to be up to Qrow?"

"Well, now that you basically made my main job obsolete, I guess I'm going to be tracking down those other three you talked about. How about… Tyrian first. Got anything on him?"

"Scorpion Faunus, prominent scars on his chest. Long black hair. Absolutely insane." No sugarcoating his description.

"Great, sound like a real party. I'll be sure to carry anti-venom. Thanks for the info, kid." He reached over to mess with my hair but I knocked his hand away.

"No prob, old man. And I'm not Ruby, so don't mess with my hair." We were already in the elevator, making our way up at this point. "You just keep yourself safe you hear. I don't want to tell Ruby and Yang that I practically got their favorite uncle killed by sending him after a crazy guy."

"Eh, they could probably handle it at this point. They're tough kids now. And I got luck on my side, so I'm not going to die." He pounded a hand on his chest.

"Qrow, your semblance is bad luck. It affects your enemy **and** you. Luck is not on your side." I deadpanned at him.

He just leaned back and took a long look at me. "Kid, you know way too much. It's kinda scary. And a good thing you're on our side."

The elevator dinged and opened. We walked out and Qrow said a hasty goodbye before running off to the side of Beacon's cliff. A few seconds later, a crow was flying away. "He really shouldn't drink and fly." She just rolled her eyes and started walking to the dorm building. "So, I just wanted to ask if there are no hard feelings now. You know, since I insulted you a few times and you smacked me into the walls enough times that I went unconscious."

"Fine, there are no hard feelings. A clean slate from today on Miss Arc." She held out her hand for a shake and I shook it. A small smile graced her lips. "I look forward to your future bouts in combat class."

"I too look forward to those. Maybe if I get put against a team I could use my full arsenal?" I looked expectantly to her and she reluctantly nodded. I fistpumped.

"I believe that there is something you should know about Ozpin that I just recently learned. That I'm telling you as someone I can trust." She held me up and checked for anybody nearby. When she saw that the coast was clear, she lowered her voice. "He has figures of you all in his office. I have no clue what he is doing with them, but he was putting them in pairs when I walked in on him."

"How were the pairs formed?"

"Mostly partners, I saw him thinking about Mister Daichi and Miss Scarlatina before he pushed them off his desk and denied they were there."

"He is shipping his students."

"I do not believe Ozpin would ship his students anywhere, legally or illegally."

"No, shipping as in putting them in romantic pairs. I had my suspicions, but you have confirmed them." _"Suspicions from my old life, but suspicions nonetheless!"_

"You are telling me that Ozpin is playing matchmaker? I highly doubt that."

I had to show her it was possible. She had to know the glory of shipping. "How easy is it to change the trajectory of the launchpads used in initiation?"

"It is simple. A professor can do so using their scroll."

"Did you see him messing with his scroll when everyone had made it to their pads?"

"Yes, but I believe he was messaging the other professors something."

"Well, it's simple to find out. Check the pads to see if they have been tampered with from the original trajectory and check with the others if they received a message from Ozpin on that morning." She did a quick check of her scroll and frowned.

"The launchpads have been tampered with." She typed out a fast message to Port. Not thirty seconds later, she received a reply. "And Peter says that they received no messages that day until much later." I look of straight disbelief came over her face. "You are right. He is shipping students. I must tell the other professors. I will see you in class tomorrow Miss Arc." She quickly made her way down the hall and out of sight, the sound of her heels echoing off the walls.

I looked up to a random corner, hoping a camera was there. "I'm onto you, Ozpin. You better believe in Arkos, she will become my sister."

After making it the rest of the way to the dorm room, I swiped my scroll against the lock and sprinted into the room as soon as the door opened. I jumped and landed on the bed, causing Jaune, who was sitting on it, to go flying off. "Echo, where have you been? We were about to head off looking for you." Jaune told me from the floor.

"It was a really long talk with Ozpin and the other professors. Oobleck really wanted to look at my journal, you know. Goodwitch said that I need to be more careful to not damage other's equipment. I met Peach, she has really cute ears. And Port and I talked about food. All-in-all, it was okay." They had dressed in their casual clothes, ready to search for me had I not just entered the room.

Jaune was wearing a grey hoodie and his jeans with beat up sneakers. Pyrrha was in a red t-shirt, grey sweatpants and was wearing a brand-new pair of shoes, brand name too. Nora was in a pink shirt, grey shorts, pink tennis shoes. Ren was in a green hoodie, green track pants and those slip-on shoes.

"Are we going to do anything tonight? I mean, you guys are already out of your uniforms and into normal clothes, it's be a waste to just change out of those and into sleep wear."

Jaune scratched at the back of his head. "I guess we could go check to see what Team RWBY is doing. Maybe have a get together in the common room."

"Cool, sounds like a plan. Jaune and Ren, go check to see if they have plans. Nora and Pyrrha, commandeer the common room if it has already been claimed, otherwise claim it. I'll slip into something more comfortable than this uniform." They went to their appointed tasks and I slipped out of my skirt and practically ripped the top off. I hate blazers and I hate neck strings, I have no idea what they're called even! If we could attend classes in casual attire, I would be totally down for that.

I was debating on sweats or athletic shorts when Jaune and Ren walked back into the room. "They said that… Echo! Cover yourself!"

Ren just turned around and walked out of the room while Jaune stood there covering his eyes. "Jaune, I am decent you know? And you walked in here when you could have just gone down to the common room. This one's on you bro." He sputtered and ran out of the room, forgetting to close the door. I rolled my eyes and stuck my head out the door, yelling after him, "You forgot to close the door, Jaune!" And as I stood there in the doorway, I realized that my outfit right now was good enough. A maroon shirt and my spats, I don't care if people see me in them since I wear them under my skirt to make sure my underwear isn't visible. Screw skirts, they're undependable.

There weren't many people in the halls, as they were either in their rooms or somewhere else in Beacon. The few people I did pass, however, turned their heads when they saw me walking past. _"That's right, you wish you had a piece of Echo. Won't ever get it though, so keep dreaming suckas!"_ Upon entering the common room, I was met by the smell of popcorn, and Nora was the culprit with her extra-large bowl of extra-buttered popcorn. "Hey Echo, we were just waiting on you to help us pick out a movie." She shoved four DVD cases into my face. "Ren wants to watch Journey to the West, Pyrrha wants to watch 300, I want to watch The Wild West, and Jaune wants to watch Twilight."

I smacked Twilight out of her hands like it was the most venomous snake in existence. "None of that! Jaune, I thought you were beyond that drivel!"

He poked his fingers together. "I read all the books though…"

"Read a real romance to purge your mind of those books, and don't ever watch the movie. It's just a bunch of angsty teenage drama that we do not need in our lives." I regarded the other three movies. "Ren, you do know that this movie is more comedy than martial arts correct?" He looked dejected at that and grabbed the movie, putting it back where he had found it. "Pyrrha, you would probably just be commenting all the time on the fighting styles and armor of the Spartans. Denied." Nora threw the movie back to its spot on the shelf, somehow landing it in perfectly. "We're going with The Wild Wild West."

"Yeah! I love this one!" Nora popped the case open and grabbed the disk. Upon turning the tv on, she ran back to the couch Ren had sat himself upon. She settled into his side and snatched the remote from the cushion beside her. "You guys are going to love this!"

She pressed play, and the intro credits started to play. Jaune, who was looking at the case, asked, "What's up with the pistols? They're like, super old. And then the spider thing. What's up with that."

"Jaune! Shh and enjoy the movie, all will be explained in time." Nora quieted Jaune, who had decided to take a seat next to Pyrrha. Pyrrha was sat straight up on the couch, like a rod was shoved up her spine.

"Pyrrha chill out, we're not going to call you out on improper posture." She let herself slouch slightly and I rolled my eyes. "Eh, good enough for now." I threw myself into a recliner, with legs dangling off one arm and draping my arms over the other. "When you walked into the room Jaune, what were you about to say about Team RWBY?"

"Yang said she's be able to make it, but she was the only one. Ruby was studying and Yang said that Blake was in the library. No idea where Snow Angel went."

"I really wish that you would call her by her name, Jaune. You do know who she is right, like at all?"

"She's Weiss Schnee?" This clueless brother of mine, I swear.

"Jaune, she's the heiress of the SDC, the biggest distributer of Dust on Remnant. She must have been approached by hundreds of 'potential suitors' who only wanted to get with her because of her wealth and power. Call her Weiss, not Snow Angel, and she might be less hostile towards you." The movie was starting now. "No more tips, movie's starting."

0-0-0

About halfway through the movie was when Yang came out, and she had almost sat on me. I got up and she sat down, then I draped myself over her legs and the armrests. She wasn't really bothered by it, but she poked at me every now and again to try to annoy me. Weiss had passed through the room when the spider mech had been introduced, and she shuddered. Note to self, Weiss doesn't like spiders. She quickly left before the others noticed her, and we finished the movie.

Yang waved to us and headed off to her room. Pyrrha picked up the case of the movie. "I am surprised there were no Grimm in this movie. It actually made it more enjoyable." She looked at the date it was made and made the strangest look. "It says the film was made in 1999. How is that even possible?"

Ren turned to Nora, who was busy tryin to clean out the rest of the popcorn. "Nora, when did you see this movie?"

"Oh, I've never seen it!"

"Didn't you say that we would enjoy it?"

"Yes! I mean, look at that cool picture on the front!" She pointed at the two actors standing side by side, with a small depiction of the spider mech below them.

"Nora, you specifically said that you loved this movie. Are you sure you haven't seen it?"

Nora looked up and to the side, thinking about the hundreds of movies she's seen before. "Hmmmmm. Yep!"

Pyrrha looked at the other movies on the shelves. "Many of these films have similar dates, only ranging about twenty years at the furthest. Where did Beacon get these?"

I shushed her. "I have no clue, but I'm not complaining. These movies are all decently good, I've seen most of them." I got questioning looks from Jaune, Pyrrha and Ren as Nora was still eating her popcorn. _"How deep is that bowl?"_ I checked my scroll. "We should probably head to sleep, we still have classes tomorrow. Jaune, you better not wear the onesie again. In fact, you should probably burn that thing."

"But Lily gave it to me! I'm not going to burn it!" He looked appalled that I would suggest he do such a thing.

"And if you wear it again, I will send it back to her. Just wear some shorts and a shirt instead, you'll look less ridiculous." We entered the room and changed into sleep clothes. Well, the others did and Jaune followed my advice, but I just took off my shirt and went with my sports bra instead of putting on a shirt and my spats instead of putting on sleep pants. I clambered into bed first and Jaune decided to face away from me, probably due to embarrassment. Pyrrha turned off the lights and climbed into her own bed.

Light snores were soon heard from the others while I was having trouble going to sleep. I had this feeling like I forgot to tell Ozpin something. But it was small and big at the same time. Something to do with Roman and ice cream… I forgot to tell him about Neo. Oh well, there was always tomorrow. I fell asleep, having a peace of mind since I figured out what I had been forgetting.

I woke up with something poking me in the back. And I mean something. "Jaune!"

He fell from the bed. "I'm up!" He shot up from the floor where he had fallen. "What happened? Are we going to be late?"

"No. I'm sleeping with Nora from now on though." Our shouting had woken our other teammates. "Go take a cold shower Jaune."

He blushed heavily and practically jumped from where he was into the bathroom. They looked to me, and Pyrrha asked, "What was that about?"

"Morning, problems, yknow?" She shook her head. "Wood."

"Jaune had wood in his pocket? How does a cold shower help with that?" Ren, Nora and I slap our hands to our heads.

"Go across the hall and grab Blake. Ask her." Without even bothering to dress, Pyrrha left the room and knocked on Team RWBY's door. Ruby was the one who came and opened it and she said good morning to Pyrrha.

"Yes, good morning Ruby. Is Blake up? I have something to ask her."

"Yeah, she's up. Hey Blake, Pyrrha has something to ask you." Ruby scooted away from the door to finish getting ready and Blake took her spot.

"Hello. What do you need to know?" Dark and mysterious as ever Blake. Kinda sound like that trader from Resident Evil. I just imagined her in a trench coat and saying, "What are ya buying?" And then opening the coat and it's only fish. Fish for days yo!

"What is wood?" Pyrrha asked and I had to stifle my laughter, and Nora was holding her pillow to her face to muffle hers.

"Wood? You mean lumber? I'm sure you know what wood means, Pyrrha." She looked over to us in our room. "Is that all you wanted to ask? I have to finish getting ready for classes."

"Echo said it was of the morning problems? I'm not sure what she meant by that. Apparently Jaune woke her up with it, or it was bothering her when she woke up." I was rolling on the floor at this point with silent laughter.

Blake's face lit up, but Yang popped up from behind her before she could say anything. "P-Money doesn't know what morning wood is?! This is priceless!"

Ruby spoke up from behind Yang. "Neither do I. What does morning wood mean?"

Yang jumped, remembering her fifteen-year-old baby sister was in the room with her. "I'll tell you when you're older Rubes. Blake, take this to the hall." They left the room and closed the door. "Now to tell you…" She looked like she was going to say it before she got the better of herself. "Actually, why don't we take this to your room so we can tell you without someone listening in."

They moved to our room and shut the door. Jaune had just walked out of the bathroom, finished with his shower and dressed in his uniform. Pyrrha asked Yang, "This is much to go through to tell me what morning wood means. Is it something dangerous?"

Yang barely spared Jaune a glance before she turned back to Pyrrha. "Well… wait, why did you specifically ask for Blake to explain this to you?"

Pyrrha pointed to me. "Echo said to ask Blake what it meant when I asked her what having a cold shower would help with wood in the pocket."

Blake looked to me and I just shrugged. "I figured it was best you told her because of the literature you read."

Yang looked to her partner. "What kind of literature you read? There something I should know about Blake?"

She glared at me. "No, Yang, there is not something you should know. Just keep Ruby away from my books. And Pyrrha, morning wood is an erection."

The look on Pyrrha's look was priceless. I whipped out my scroll and took a picture of it before falling to the floor once more, roaring with laughter. Jaune was looking down at his shoes in embarrassment. "Jaune! How could you?! She's your sister!"

"It's a natural thing you know!? I can't exactly control it!" His head was like a tomato, with steam practically coming out of his ears.

Yang and Blake looked about the same as Pyrrha had just a moment ago. "How would that even happen? Vomit Boy, what's going on?"

"We were sharing a bed because we're one short and she said that she would share the bed with me. I didn't mean to!" He was acting like he was on trial, sentenced to death is he was found guilty.

Blake had steam coming out of her ears, both pairs. "Oh my gosh, it's just like a scene from _Booty Thief_ …" She said this in such a quiet voice that only Yang and I heard it. A thin trail of blood was dripping from her nose.

"Oh my god Blake… you read smut." Yang was obviously shocked. She didn't expect her partner, the cold cool beauty to read smut.

"It's not smut! It's literary art!" Blake rushed out of the room when she saw the look forming on Yang's face. "You're not touching them."

"You better hide them good, Blakey! Ruby's not going to be seeing them, and if she does then you're never seeing them again!" She chased after Blake.

"Today is a wonderful day already!" I held both arms above my head, a massive smile plastered to my face. "Onwards, to breakfast!"

"Echo, we're still not dressed. You're still not dressed. Only Jaune is dressed." Ren oh so helpfully pointed out.

"Good point Ren. Jaune, go hold our table and get you and I our food while the rest of us get ready. We'll be down in under ten minutes." He just looked to the others and they shrugged. "No dilly-dallying Jaune! Let's get moving people! I want to eat and get Port's class over with."

Jaune hurried out and Ren claimed the bathroom for his place to change. Nora, Pyrrha and I got into our uniforms and Ren walked out right after, placing his clip-on tie onto the neck of his uniform. "Let us get moving, we do not want to leave Jaune waiting." Pyrrha led our little group to the dining hall and the three went to get their food.

I walked over to Jaune and sat down where he had placed my tray. He got me eggs, and bacon, and toast. "Jaune."

He swallowed the mouthful he was chewing. "Yeah?"

"Where is my bowl of oranges? And my coffee?" I pointed at my plate. "I only see crappy eggs and bacon, with somewhat decent toast."

He looked indignant. "Hey, you never specified what you wanted, so I just got what I got. No need to be angry with me."

"I'm not angry." I pouted and reluctantly dug into the breakfast I had been given. "So, when are you going to call home? They're going to want to hear from you soon, and if you don't tell them within a week I will." I would keep bothering him until he did it.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'll call them after classes today, I guess. Will you be there with me when I do it?"

I patted his back, shoveling another forkful of eggs into my mouth. I swallowed after chewing thoroughly. "Yeah, I'll be there. Hopefully they won't demand that you come back or anything. That'd be kind of awkward."

"Hehe… yeah, it would be." The rest of the team settled down around us, with Pyrrha sitting on Jaune's side and Ren and Nora sitting on mine. "Hey, Pyrrha?"

She stopped moving toward her food and looked up to him. "Yes Jaune?"

"Umm, is it possible for you to, I don't know, give me some training or something?" He put down his fork and rubbed the back of his head. "I'm not really the strongest and could really use some help."

She looked to me and then back to Jaune. "Of course I can help train you, Jaune. Why didn't you ask your sister?"

I interjected. "It's because he wants to get somewhere without my help. Remember, living in my shadow thing? That, and I don't really fight with a sword and board technique all the time. That's only a transition phase." I scraped off the last bits of crappy eggs and got started on the bacon.

"Hey, what's up now Vomit Boy?!" Yang yelled down the aisle, as she walked ahead of the rest of her team. A few people looked to see who she was talking to and looked back when I sent glares their way. If anybody other than Yang called Jaune Vomit Boy within my hearing range, I would dunk them. Hard.

He hung his head in embarrassment (how many times is Jaune going to be embarrassed in this story). "Could you possibly… not, Yang? That's emasculating, to be called Vomit Boy."

She sat down, and began on her breakfast. "Well, you would be known as Vomit Man if you were manlier, but I think even your sister is beating you in that department. She could be known as the _manager_." She finger guns at me and I finger gun back. "Speaking of you, Echo, the way you absolutely smashed Cardin was awesome! How'd you know what his weapon was going to do when he dropped it?"

I had finished off everything by now and wiped my face clean. "I've worked on a weapon similar to his when I was working in Otto's. It was a hammer instead of a mace, but the Dust used was the same mix. Some fire Dust and grav Dust, to cause a massive explosion, usually in a wave down a single line. I use the mix, or something close to it in Sol, one of my dual swords. More fire, less grav."

Ruby perked up at the mention of my weapons. "Yeah, I saw it yesterday! Do they mechashift into anything super cool? Like a railgun?"

I shook my head. "No, nothing that complex for them. They simply merge together to form what I call The Heavens, since one is Sol and the other is Luna."

"Sol and Luna? What does that have to do with Heaven?" She quirked her head to the side.

Weiss told her for me. "Sol means Sun, and Luna means moon. So the sun and moon in one form the sky, or the heavens. Honestly, do you think anything through?"

"Yes, I do. I thought over our schedule for this weekend when we go into Vale for a team outing. Our first one!" She hopped up and down before biting into another cookie.

"And what makes you think that I'll want to go into Vale this weekend? I was hoping to study for Professor Oobleck's class then." She dismissively waved her hand in Ruby's direction.

I corrected her. "Weiss, he prefers to be called Doctor Oobleck. He corrects anyone who calls him professor and then proceeds to state that he did not get his doctorate for fun." She gave me a sour look before going back to her food.

"Thank you." It sounded like she wanted to say something else and Ruby elbowed her in the ribs. "Fine, fine, I'll tell her." She looked up to me and held out her hand. "I apologize for yesterday. You aided me when I was in a time of need and I wrongfully became angry with you. Will you accept my apology?"

I took her hand in mine and looked her in the eye. "I do hereby accept your apology, Weiss Schnee. May we become lifelong acquaintances, or at least until our four years at this academy are finished, for the good of our school and our teams."

"That is most gracious of you, Miss Arc. I also wish to apologize for calling you a filthy Faunus yesterday, as I said so in anger and out of my clear mind."

"I forgive you for that as well, and hope that lessons learned change you for the better. May we, a Schnee and a Faunus, work together to better our teams and the student body."

"Quite." She let go of my hand and we both finished our breakfasts.

"That was… something?" Yang looked to the others for further commentary, but they were just as confused. "Why were you two so formal?"

I put on an air of aloofness, and spoke to her. "That is just the way it is, Miss Xiao Long."

Weiss also put in her two cents. "Yes, Miss Arc speaks the truth. In cases such as this, it is best to settle it with a formal agreement between the two parties." She nodded to me and I nodded back.

Yang shifted her gaze between the two of us, a look dawning on her face. "Are… are you two punking me? Did I just get punked by the Ice Queen?" She shook Ruby's shoulders. "Ruby, your partner just punked me, the punkmaster!"

"I do believe we got her, Weiss. How shall we celebrate?"

She raised an eyebrow, and gave a small smile. "I do believe that there is a tea shop in Vale. Perhaps on Sunday we can go there for a brew. And on Saturday, how would you like to study for Doctor Oobleck's class?"

I gave her a curt nod. "That sounds delightful." There was the sound of people being shoved and the scuffling of feet as people moved away from the group making their way towards us.

Snarling came from the person standing behind me. "ARC! YOU,ME,NOW."

I turned and gave a sickened smile to him. "Winchester." I pointed to the bench across the aisle from us. "How about we come to a compromise?"


	8. Chapter 7- Ships

**Reviewer Acknowledgement**

 **DamascusVazarin- Well, since you are the first one to suggest a ship, that will most likely what ends up happening. Unless someone else throws in someone they would like to be shipped, in which case a vote will happen.**

 **(Let it be known that I do not want to throw off my other ships too drastically and I do not feel that any one of my ships is in any shape form or fashion superior to other ships involving the characters [What I'm saying here is that I do not ship-bash])**

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"Yeah, I'm not sitting anywhere. Square up Arc, we're clearing up who the superior Huntsman is right now." His words sent murmurs through the gathered students. Some people further back were starting up a betting pool.

"As much as I would love to kick your ass again, Cardin, I believe that this is not the place to do it. I believe that there are specific rules against such actions, and punishment would be decided by Miss Goodwitch. So, unless you plan on being punished harshly, suspended, or straight up expelled, I suggest you sit your behind right there in that seat and speak with me like a damn human being." There were some students in the crowd 'oohing' and some that said, 'sick burn'.

"Yeah right, like I would talk things out with a filthy animal!" When that didn't faze me, he kept going. "Yeah! You're just some stupid Faunus kid! You beat me out of sheer luck yesterday. If I was being serious, you wouldn't have lasted thirty seconds."

"Cardin, I doubt you last thirty seconds by yourself. There's no need to compare a fight to _that_." A wave of laughter erupted from the students around us and Yang was trying to keep her laughter in. "And this is where the compromise I was speaking about will come in. If I win the next fight against you, you and your team have to leave me the fuck alone. No harassing me, no getting others to harass me. I will act like you aren't there and you will abide by this."

"And what do I get if I beat you? You sure as hell don't have anything I want." He crossed his arms, his teammates still standing behind him. It looked like he was deep in thought, and a malicious grin spread on his face. "I win, and I get you. Whatever I want, whenever I want."

Jaune looked like he was about to speak before I cut him off. "Deal. But if you go back on your end of the deal, I will castrate you."

He laughed, tossing his head back. "Yeah, you keep telling yourself that, freak. I'll see you in the arena." He stalked off with his teammates trailing behind him, leaving the room and slamming the doors.

Jaune grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me. "Echo! What the hell are you thinking?! Offering yourself to that… that…" He looked like he was trying to think of a word to describe Cardin.

"Lecherous scumbag?" Pyrrha offered.

"Waste of skin?" Weiss added.

"What they said! What if you lose?! I don't think I could handle that!" He was biting at his nails now, looking to be on the verge of a mental breakdown.

"No need to worry Jaune, I will win. And all of you, don't you worry either. I am confident in my abilities, and I hope that you all have confidence in my abilities as well." They looked contemplative for a second before Ruby burst out.

"What the heck were you two saying? Thirty seconds, anything anytime, castrate? I'm so confused." I reached out and rubbed my hand against her hair.

"Yang will tell you when you're older Rubes." She crossed her arms and pouted, grumbling about drinking milk. "Anyways, now that the excitement is over for now, we should head to classes. I'm looking forward to crushing Team CRDL!" I smashed a fist into my palm and was answered by surprised shouts.

"What!?" Jaune was nearly hyperventilating at this point, with Pyrrha trying to calm him down.

"Yeah, I convinced Goodwitch yesterday to let me fight a whole team! Good plan, great plan!" I cleaned up and headed out of the cafeteria. "Hurry up to Port's class guys, we don't want to have an even _Grimmer_ time than normal." Pained groans met my pun, except from Yang who gave a laugh.

So, in the halls, students pointed at me and whispered either 'Boarbatusk Wrestler' or 'that crazy girl from professor Oobleck's class'. There were also a few that referred to me as 'Cardin's new toy'. I sent those few a dark look and they quickly scampered off to where they were heading. I made it to Port's relatively calm and got ready for a completely normal class.

Well, as normal as a class could be. There was no Grimm in a cage this time, so that was a plus. But, it was also a negative, seeing as how he would have more time to just ramble on about himself. Now, he did actually give out good tips in his stories, you just had to get through the slog that was the rest of the story. It seems that today he has a story about a Beringel, seeing as it was the only thing drawn up on the board. As soon as the students had filtered in and the bell rang, he got into the story.

"Today is yet another story of a brave, young, heroic, handsome man… still me!" The students around me groaned and most of them put their heads on the desk in front of them to go to sleep. I simply readied my pencil and paper for notes. "This story begins in the caves of Mistral, as I was aiding a discovery crew…" He trailed off into his story and I wrote up notes that I hadn't read about before, such as the singular focus of Beringels.

Class with Port isn't nearly as bad as people claim it to be. Sure, he spouts tales of his heroics like a waterfall, but he damn well knows what he's talking about. It also helped that he wasn't staring at me anymore. When his class finished, we headed over to Professor Peach's class where, surprise surprise, she wasn't there again. The writing on the board this time told us to read through the beginning of the Medical Aid book to chapter two. And again, this was rather simple stuff that any civilian could learn, with aura treatment starting in chapter four. This time, Weiss sat with us and we helped each other out.

It was a good time, she only shouted twice!

With the end of the class, I carried our books back to our room again, but when I left I was met by Port. No clue why he's just standing outside my door. "I heard earlier from some second-year students that you made a deal with Mister Winchester? One that is particularly… morally wrong?"

I raised a brow. "Peter. If I may call you that outside of classes and view of the other students." He just nodded. "I know that I will not lose to Winchester or his team. They are disrespectful, rude, and worst of all, overconfident. I hope, by beating them this early on in the year, I will knock them down a few pegs so that they may learn humility and to treat the other students around them with more respect. There is nothing worse for them at this moment than themselves."

"If you insist, Miss Arc." He stood quiet for a moment before starting again. "But, if you should lose, then the professors and Ozpin will help you get out of your deal. There is no shame in getting out of… that."

"While I do thank you for the offer, and Arc never goes back on their word. I am guessing there is a sizeable betting pool at the moment though?"

He chuckled and stroked his moustache. "Yes, there is. And it is heavily against you right now, despite your earlier display against Mister Winchester." He leaned down and whispered to me. "Don't tell the others, but I put a thousand Lien on you." He leaned back up and strode off. "Good day to you Miss Arc, and good luck!"

I simply laughed and went off to have lunch. It was okay, with the others saying I really didn't have to go through with fighting the whole team. I could just fight Cardin again and hand his ass to him on a silver platter. I scoffed at this, I wanted a real challenge, not just the same fight as yesterday.

"I have five hundred Lien riding on you winning. You sure as hell are not wimping out of this." It seems that Yang is the only one not saying that I should back out, but only because she has money riding on this fight. Well, there were also Weiss and Blake, but they were just being quiet on the matter. The only way I could tell they were still listening was by the scowls on their faces. "Did you know that you have over five thousand Lien bet on you even though there's only, like, four people betting on you?"

"Seriously? I know it's you and someone I can't say, but who are the other two?" We were on our way to the locker rooms when she told me.

"Don't know, they didn't put down their names. All they put down were these symbols." She held up her scroll and I laughed. Depicted on the 'Official Betting Tally of Echo Arc vs Team CRDL' there was Port's axe head in a deep burgundy color, green cogs, and a coffee mug. And, as she showed it to me, it updated and I laughed even harder. Qrow's symbol was now sitting at the bottom of the list of my side, and he had doubled the pot.

"How did Qrow even hear about this!" I had to lean against a wall to get myself back together.

"What?" Yang looked at her scroll and nearly dropped it. "Guys, our uncle just doubled the pot for Echo. Guess who's getting herself some new boots this weekend?!" We just looked at her, and the smile that was on her face grew more forced. "And that is going to buy things for her friends and teammates?" We nodded and she dropped her head. "Spoilsports."

I patted her back. "Don't worry Yang, all I'm going to ask for is a pair of shears or some scissors." A few nervous chuckles met my choice of gift. Ren and Jaune moved their legs a little closer together as they walked, only going back to normal when they walked into the boy's side of the locker rooms. "Do you guys think that Goodwitch will send me out first, or hold onto this until last?" They simply shrugged and we changed into our clothes and strapped our weapons on, or mostly fitting them into their holsters or scabbards of sorts.

We headed out to the seats and sat down where Ren and Jaune had picked out seats, on the complete opposite side that Carding had chosen. His teammates looked like they were doubting this entire thing, but Cardin looked on with almost sadistic glee as he twirled his mace's head on the floor. After everyone had taken their seats, Goodwitch came out from the box that had not been there yesterday. _"Did they just install that thing last night, or this morning? Where the heck was it?"_

She cleared her throat. "Today, there will be random matches chosen with a system. If you have already fought during the day, whether it was a win or a loss, you will not fight again. This is for your safety. But, before these matches commence, a student has requested that they face a team on their own. This is not normal for first years, and I will tell you this now that if you request this from me because of this fight, I will outright deny it. I am willing to allow this simply because the Headmaster and I wish to know the full extent of this student's combat prowess." She held up the clipboard. "If Echo Arc and Team CRDL would please make their way to the arena."

I hopped down, not bothering to take the stairs. Team CRDL took the stairs and positioned themselves close to the mark that Cardin was now standing on. I didn't throw any of my weapons this time, as I would most likely use them all. "Not going to throw your weapons this time? Maybe you're scared? You're going to lose with them all anyways, so be ready buttercup."

I didn't acknowledge him, and I pointedly looked at Goodwitch. She moved to the official's box and said, "Are both parties ready?" I nodded and Cardin nodded for his team. "Then begin!"

They were just standing there with their weapons ready, while I stood in the same stance I had used yesterday. Cardin wasn't rushing this time, and was motioning for the others to rush in to distract me. They weren't willing to listen so I decided to try something. I dropped my stance and stood straight up, holding my arms out to my sides with a smirk on my face. "You know what? I'll give you all one clean hit on me."

They looked at me like I was crazy, and some of the students in the seats looked as if they thought the same. Russel was the first to brave an attack, dashing in and swiping at my ribs with a dagger. It hit my aura and was absorbed by my semblance and he quickly went back to his team. Dove was next, sending a jab at my shoulder with his sword, the results the same as Russel. Sky followed shortly after, sending his halberd's haft into my stomach. When Cardin had seen me take it all without being staggered, he grew enraged and practically dropped his mace on my head, with the dust in his mace activated.

There was a small cloud of dust as his mace head exploded against my cranium. When the dust cleared, I was holding his mace by the handle right under the head. "Thanks for the boost, Cardin! I was thinking I would have to ramp it up some more, but you just put me up to a decent amount." The look on his face made it clear that he knew he had fucked up. I rammed my knuckles of my right hand into the crook of his elbow, forcing him to relent his mace to me. I threw it out of the arena, disarming him for the rest of the bout.

The first person I focused on taking out was Russel, he had the lightest armor and could move quickly. I grabbed Jolder and shifted it into axe form, sliding along the ground to snatch his ankle with the hook of the head. When he fell to the ground, Dove rushed in to aid him, but I pushed him back by activating the fire Dust in the head of Jolder and swiping it at him and Sky. They retreated so they weren't burned by the arc of fire that had been formed. I shifted Jolder into its hammer mode before Russel could get back up and slammed it down on him. Hard. His aura went from the ninety-five it had been when I knocked him down to three percent. Goodwitch pulled him out with her semblance, and the other three grouped up. I would show them the error of their ways.

Augmenting my speed, I rushed into their faces and then augmented my strength, bringing the hammer down and activating the grav Dust. It hit the floor and sent a wave of compressed air out and they were sent flying, but not far enough to be considered ring out. "What the fuck are you guys doing?! This should be easy!" Cardin was losing whatever cool he had to begin with, which was almost none anyways.

"BREAK THEIR LEGS!" Nora was shouting from the seats, and Ren was trying to get her to calm down. He wasn't having much luck though. She looked excited to see me using my hammer form again.

I focused back on the fight, as Dove and Sky were trying to come at me from each side, with Cardin coming down the center. I shifted Jolder into its shield form and met Cardin's attack, deflecting it to the side and hitting Dove with Cardin's body. I ducked under Sky's attack and he hit the other two, then I hit him in the stomach, making him drop his weapon. This time, instead of throwing out of the ring, I danced away from them with it in my hands. I put Jolder on my back and made a show of spinning it around.

"Wow, this thing is super light." I deflected a blow from Dove with the butt of the haft and struck him with the head. "You guys are making this seems too easy. Are you holding back?"

"Arrrrgh!" Cardin rushed me again, trying to get me into a hold. I stepped to his right and held the pole to his throat, clotheslining him. He dropped and Sky rushed me to try to get his weapon back. I hit his shin and then brought the weapon around my body to hit him in the waist and then brought it above my head from around my body to deliver a devastating smash to his head. His aura dropped below the red and Goodwitch dragged him out as well. I dropped Sky's weapon off the side and brought out Sol and Luna, not bothering to merge them.

Dove tried to make another stab at me, but I dodged his strike and stepped into his guard. I punched him with both hands, holding my swords in a reverse grip, and while he was recovering I used him as a springboard. I sailed over Cardin, who had tried to sneak up on me while I focused on Dove and he ended up crashing into Dove and sending them both to the floor. I stomped on Dove's wrist and he cried out, releasing his sword. I kicked it out of the arena, leaving me as the only one with actual weapons. "Do you two want to give up now? I won't hold it against you if you bow out now, no hard feelings being beaten by a superior opponent."

Cardin snarled and picked up Dove by his armor, sending him flying at me. I ducked easily, and Dove was out of the ring, with Cardin rushing at me. I slid under his arms and brought my swords to meet the backs of his knees. He went down and I brought the swords to his neck in an x formation, and my knee was against his back with my foot between his legs. "Do you surrender?"

"Never!" He spat out before trying to bring his head back. It was stopped by my knee to his back and I pressed the swords together, bringing them against his neck like a giant pair of scissors. I activated the dust on each and fire and ice contested against each other to drain his aura. There was also him being shocked by lightning dust and held down by grav dust so he wasn't going anywhere. It looked like he was about to pass out before the buzzer sounded. I stepped back immediately, deactivating and sheathing my blades. Cardin rubbed at his neck, and decided to be dumb by charging at me after the buzzer.

I stood my ground and he was halted inches from my face. "Mister Winchester! You will stop after the buzzer has sounded. Collect your weapons and your teammates and head to the infirmary after divesting yourselves of your gear. I will see you specifically in detention tomorrow." She turned to me. "That was a risky move at the beginning, Miss Arc, but otherwise a wonderful fight. I suggest you no longer allow a hit from your opponents in such a way."

"Understood, Professor Goodwitch." I bowed to her and made my way back to my seat. I looked up to the aura gauge and saw that I had only gone down by five percent. My semblance still needed aura to work, so I contributed three percent to that and two to the hits I had taken. When I sat down, I was hugged by an excited Nora and given a pat on the back by the rest of the team.

Yang was rubbing her hands together. "That was sweet. And guess what?" She held her scroll up for us all to see. "We're fucking rich!" With her part of the bet, she had gotten a decent amount of Lien that would no doubt be gone by the end of the weekend. That, or next weekend.

Goodwitch cut off any further conversations by calling up the next fight. "Xiao Long vs Deku." Yang took my route of jumping over the wall, and Deku, a small kid with a head of wild dark green hair, took the stairs. He was another hand to hand fighter, with gauntlets that covered his entire arm. He kind of looks like a younger Oobleck really. I took out my scroll and pulled up his info.

His semblance was some sort of super strength, so a bad match against Yang. He was floundering to get a hit, as he obviously wasn't the best at fighting humans. The hits he did land, however, only served to boost Yang, and the fight was over quickly in Yang's favor.

Oh, going back to the scroll info thing. Beacon really needs to update their security. Like, holy cow is it bad. My meager hacking skills allowed me to get into the student info they had on file and a few other things. I would be sure to bring this up with Ozpin the next talk we had. I had hacked into the system when I had free time in Peach's class.

Yang plopped back down in her seat, dissatisfied. "That was way to anticlimactic. Now I really want to fight a team like Echo."

"Don't hinge on it Yang, remember what Goodwitch said. She won't be accepting people saying they want to fight a team just because I fought a team."

She pouted and crossed her arms under her breasts. "Yeah, I know." She looked over to me. "How did you convince her to do that in the first place? It's our second day here and you already got her to do something?"

I waved my hand in a dismissive gesture. "It was actually part of the talk last night. I'm pretty sure that Ruby could probably get a team fight if she wanted. Pyrrha too."

Ruby shook her head and waved her hands in front of her. "No no no, I don't want to fight a whole team just yet. I have normal knees!"

"I do not feel that I would want to fight a team this early. It would be wasteful as they have not had the time to get used to their strategies." Ever the nice and humble person Pyrrha Nikos, swooping in with logic.

"Sure, they haven't gotten used to each other, but they must also learn humility you know. As Huntsmen and Huntresses, we fight together. There is no need to say that you are above others simply because of your upbringing or views on the world. Team CRDL were in both categories, and this fight served to remind them that they are students just like the rest of us. It would also help them to get over their racism." I was reminded of them pulling on Velvet's ears in about a month.

Nora placed herself between us. "No more heavy talk! It's fighting time!" I laughed and gave her a one-armed hug. We watched the rest of the fights, watching the styles of everyone. Nora didn't get to fight today, which made her sad, but I reminded her that there was always tomorrow. She brightened up and skipped to her next class.

When I got to the room, I was met with a surprise. Against the wall opposite to the bathroom was a futon, one of the ones that also folds into a couch. It was a light pink with blue pillows on it. I ran over to it and flopped into its cushiness. "Aww yeah. Dibs on the futon." Pyrrha and Ren didn't deny me my futon, as it was clearly meant for me. It also meant that I wouldn't' have to sleep with Nora also.

0-0-0

Classes for the rest of the week were simple. Cardin held his end of our bargain and didn't bother me at all, instead choosing to bother others. I was raised to even higher status among the student body with my win against CRDL, which was annoying. Some students, male and female, decided that I was someone that they wanted to date. I shot every one of them down swiftly, as there was no need to lead them on. I got two new nicknames, Ice Bat and Ice Cat. I was relating even more to Weiss now, and Pyrrha.

Being a celebrity sucked.

But now, it was the weekend! Screw classes and stuff, it's time to kick back and relax today. Well, apart from the studying with Weiss for Oobleck's class. We decided to get that done early today so that Yang won't bother us to go out tomorrow. I take a glance up at the time and see it's nine. "Hey guys, I'm gonna get Weiss and head to the library. Any of you going to come with?"

Jaune looked like he was going to say yes but Pyrrha stopped him before he said anything. "Jaune and I will be going to the training rooms to start on his training today. We will most likely be there all day, so don't wait on us."

Nora picked Ren up from his bed and carried him out of the room. "And Ren is going to make me pancakes, 'cause he didn't all this week and I need his pancakes at least four times a month. With sap syrup and cartoons on."

Ren sighed. "Yes, we will be in the dorm's kitchen." He said no more as Nora carried him down the hall and out of sight.

I just shrugged and dressed in my casual clothes, a pair of artfully ripped jeans, sneakers with ankle high blue socks, and a flannel button up shirt over a camisole. I buttoned up the first three buttons of the shirt and left it that way. I went across the hall and knocked on the door, and a very sleepy looking Yang answered.

"Yeah?" She was rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and trying to get her hair to stay out of her face.

"Is Weiss ready for that studying?" I tried to look around her, but I found it difficult with the sheer volume of her hair taking up the doorway. "She said she wanted to get there before nine thirty."

"Yes, I am awake and ready. Ruby expressed an interest to join us, so we must wait for her to finish using the restroom before we depart." Weiss was behind Yang, who had moved out of the doorway to go back to her bed. Weiss was dressed up in her combat uniform.

"Well, may I come in to wait for her then? I don't feel like taking up space in the hallway until she's finished." Weiss nodded and motioned me inside. I took a seat on Ruby's bed. "Is there a reason why you're in your combat uniform Weiss?"

She scowled. "Should I not look my best on my days off. You never know when someone is going to take a picture of you."

Blake speaks up from her bed. "It's because she doesn't have any casual clothes. Everything is fancy and not casual." She flipped a page in her book. "Rather unprepared if you ask me."

Weiss shot her a look. "Well, at least I have formal wear. Blake here doesn't have a single dress or skirt outside of her uniform."

"Okay, relax you two. I'm pretty sure that, with Yang's prize money, she will buy you some casual clothes Weiss. And some formal clothes for you Blake." I looked up to Yang, who had fallen back asleep. "In fact, I'm sure she would absolutely love to do that."

"How do you know that for sure?" Weiss looked incredulous.

I shrugged. "Just call it a hunch. Look at it this way, it'd be like she had two more sisters."

Ruby came out of the bathroom in her casual clothes, still based on red and black with combat boots. "I don't think I would want Weiss or Blake as sisters. No offense you two." They shook their heads, saying no offense taken. "Yang is already a handful and as much as I enjoy their company now, it would be too much to be related to them."

I rolled my eyes and hopped up from the bed. "They're practically your sisters now anyways, just sisters in arms. All four of you are on the same team, and will be for the next four years, barring any disasters or sudden death and dismemberment." The looks of horror on their faces were priceless. I slapped my knee and laughed. "Oh, that was too good. Come on, we're burning daylight and I'm certain Yang will not give us any more time to study if we want it."

We headed out to the library, with me carrying all our studying supplies. This bag was a super lucky find, and I wasn't really complaining about carrying the stuff. My weapons were much heavier than this stuff. When we got to the library, there was hardly anybody there. There were a few students sitting at the tables over near the windows and some were browsing the bookshelves. The student on librarian duty was reading a book at his desk.

We claimed a corner with low sitting cushioned chairs and small tables in front of them. I distributed our stuff and we quietly got to reading and note taking. Ruby would ask us questions every once and awhile, and Weiss would answer anything about Atlas and Mistral, while I would answer anything about Vale or Vacuo. Weiss had asked to see my notes to compare hers with mine, but looked confused when I handed them over. I had taken to writing my notes in English simply because it was quicker for me as I didn't have to do any translating in my head.

"Do you write like this all the time?" She looked like she was trying to decipher my paper.

"No, only things that I'm most likely reading myself. If I'm turning something in, I'll write in Valean. I just find it quicker to write in English." I took my notes back and got to writing about the wars that happened in Mistral ages ago. the way this war was turning out was like the Persian war turned out for the Romans. They even had a battle like the Battle of Thermopylae, but there were over 500 warriors in the fight instead of 300 or about.

"No wonder Professor Oobleck wanted to see your journal." Ruby was looking over at what I was writing.

"Doctor Oobleck!" He startled all three of us as he suddenly appeared behind us. I didn't even hear him approach. "And it does my heart well to see students taking my class seriously and studying with each other." He reached down to take my notes, but I snatched them away and stuffed them in my breast pocket. "If it would be possible, may I see your notes Miss Arc? I simply want to read them and see what I can understand based on what our historians and scientists have come up with so far."

I reluctantly handed him the paper I had swiped, trying to calm my heart beat to a sensible rate. "Sure, but I'm still going to need those, so they're staying here in the library with me. Doc, you scared the absolute heck out of me. Please, announce yourself before approaching next time."

"Of course, Miss Arc, I will endeavor to do so. Now, if you will excuse me for a moment so that I may look at this in peace." He bolted to a table nearby and brought out a large book with note markers sticking up every which way out of it.

I read through some more of the book and made light marks under sections I would take notes on once I had my paper back. I made sure to make them light enough that when I went to erase them, they would be gone completely. Oobleck came back and announced himself this time, thanking me for the opportunity to look at my notes, before blasting off to wherever he was going. I jotted own the things I had underlined and then erased the lines, clearing the page up of blemishes.

No more interruptions happened until it was eleven, and Yang walked into the library. She looked around until she saw us and I waved to her. After she walked over and saw that we still hadn't packed up she groaned. "You guys still aren't done? I wanted to get out of here before the air ships stopped for lunch break."

"Yang, they don't do that for another thirty minutes. We can get out of here and to the docks in that time if we hurry. Help us pick this stuff up and we'll get done faster." She rolled her eyes, but helped us anyways. As we were walking down the halls I told them not to expect any of my team besides me to be coming.

"Awesome, it'll be a girl's day out. Only without Pyrrha and Nora, but we still have tomorrow! All we have to do is put this stuff up and get Blake and we're ready!" She pulled out a wallet from her jacket's pocket. "So, where do you all want to go first? I have to _burn_ through this cash somehow."

Ruby and Weiss shared confused looks and I just deadpanned. "Yang, that was a terrible pun, even for you. Let me guess, you don't want your dad to find out that you had gambled and you need to get rid of it all." I said it more as a statement than a question.

She deflated. "Yeah, our dad doesn't really approve of gambling. But is it really a gamble if you know the outcome anyways?"

I snorted, tossing my bag onto my futon. "Yes, Yang, even if you do know the most possible outcome it is still gambling. You must always account for possible unknowns, and that no plan survives first contact."

Yang opened the door to her room and called to Blake that we were going now. She got up and placed her book on the shelf. "You sound like a dad when you say that."

I waggled my eyebrows. "Hey, you can call me _daddy_ all you want." Ruby and Weiss just looked at me like I was stupid, but Yang and Blake had to cough into their fists to cover up their laughter. "You'll be told when you're older Rubes. Weiss… ehh, you'll probably learn it soon. Or not. It depends."

"Depends? Depends on what?" I just cackled and made my way to the waiting air ship. "Tell me what you mean Arc!"

Yang leaned over to Blake and stage whispered to her. "Do you think Ozpin will let us take her off Team JNPER's hands? I like her."

Blake just chuckled. "No, Yang, I doubt the Headmaster would let her switch teams."

When we were on the air ship, it was a short ride to the drop off point in Vale. They talked amongst themselves while I quietly stood against a wall. It was nice seeing them this close already. Not even seven days ago, Weiss was practically at Ruby's throat and Blake wouldn't even talk to Weiss. They weathered Yang's puns with the tenacity of a very sturdy cliff and Ruby was actually talking to them instead of joining only when there was talk of weapons.

And it wasn't just their team that was close. My team was knitting itself some strong bonds as well, with Jaune and Ren becoming close as the only males in a team of five. Of course, I was talking to them as well as Pyrrha and Nora who had taken a liking to talking about girl stuff together. I just hung out with Ren and Jaune when that happened. Ren was freakishly good at fighting games, but no other type of game. I decimated everybody but Ruby in shooters.

It was almost like I was industrial strength glue, bonding the teams together much faster than normal. When we touched down, Yang took point and headed us to a place at the mall she had found when she was visiting Vale before Beacon. We were there for a total of two hours, grabbing lunch on our way out at the food court. I gave Ruby and Yang some directions to Otto's when they said that they were looking for a place for parts, and Weiss decided to go with them.

Yang took the clothes that they had bought, as I was the designated pack mule, except for Blake's. She and I were heading to Tukson's place because she said she wanted to pick up a new book. Tukson was one of the people that knew my other persona, Dusk, who had been the one to get into the white fang. Hopefully he wouldn't be able to tell it was me, as I had gone through a lot to make sure that my two identities were not tied together in any way. The chime for the door went off when we entered and Tukson poked his head out from the back room.

"Ah, Blake! It's good to see you again. Already finished with your latest buys?" He came all the way out and dusted off his hands on his green apron before he took it off.

"Yes, I was hoping that you had _The Man with Two Souls: Two_ in right now." She was browsing some shelves near the counter.

He typed the words into his computer and nodded. "Yeah, I got it in a few days ago. It should be just over there." He pointed to the Drama section of the store. Blake thanked him and went to search for it and he looked at me. "Is there anything I can help you out with?"

I held my hand to my chin in thought, trying to remember the book that Emerald had asked for. "Yeah, do you have ummm… _The Third Crusade_?"

He frowned. "Let me check real quick." He typed in the words quickly. "No, I don't have that right now. I could put in an order for you if you would like."

I waved my hand and shook my head. "Nah, if you don't have it in then don't bother yourself with ordering it. One of my friends recommended it to me, but I'll have to tell her that Tukson's 'Home to Every Book Under the Sun' just didn't have it."

His hands became fidgety. "Are you absolutely sure that I shouldn't order it for you then? It seems like your friend is an avid reader if they recommended it to you. And I really should stock it since I don't, thank you for pointing that out."

"I'm sure. I just came here with Blake to make sure she wouldn't be here alone. She would probably like to not carry her clothes, you know. Never know when some person might be tailing you." Blake came back up to the counter with a few books. "Oh, hey Blake. I was just telling Tukson here that he doesn't have to order me a copy of a book that he doesn't have in stock and that you never know if someone's following you."

"Okay?" She put her books on the counter. "I'd like to purchase these please."

He nodded and scanned them. "That'll be forty Lien please."

Before Blake could pay, I held out forty Lien to Tukson. "Here you go."

"Hey, you don't have to pay for my books Echo." Blake looked like she was going to hand him her money but I held her arm back.

"I insist Blake, let me pay today. I can tell you didn't really want to be here today anyways, especially with us. Let this be a gift to you."

She pulled her arm back, pocketing her money. "Well, thank you then." She took her books, packed into a bag, and headed to the door. She stopped when I hadn't followed her, and looked back to me. "Are you coming?"

I nodded and waved her off. "Yeah, I'm just going to talk to Tukson here for a bit longer. Go on ahead and meet up with the others, I'll catch up." She just gave a brief nod and walked out. I turned to Tukson and lowered my head, whispering. "Where is Red Bull?"

He tensed. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Is it some sort of new book coming out, or a drink or something?"

I put my hand on the counter. "Don't try to play coy with me Tukson. I know that you went to the last meeting. Now, where is he?"

His claws slid out of his fingers. "Why do you ask?"

I motioned to the door. "I'm looking out for Blake. You obviously know why."

He licked his lips and let his claws go back. "Last I heard, he was on the road still heading away from Vale. He should be in a sizeable camp somewhere not far away from a village near Forever Fall."

I started to walk away. "Thank you Tukson. Please do not tell Blake we had this little chat. If she asks what we talked about, tell her it was about _Ninjas of Love_ or something similar. She doesn't know that I know she's hiding her ears." I opened the door and walked out, throwing a hand up in goodbye.

I caught up with her and we walked quietly to Otto's. She was reading one of her new books, dodging people that didn't see her or weren't bothered enough to get out of her way. When we reached the shop, Ruby was still geeking out over the parts that were on sale. Otto looked up from the counter and a grin grew on his face. "Echo! Good to see you again girl! Congratulations on getting into Beacon."

I gave him a hug and nodded. "Thanks Otto. You been listening to Ruby go on this whole time?"

"Aye. She knows what she's talking about too. Reckon she could match up with your knowledge about weapons. It'd be great to have her working here." He scratched at his beard.

I laughed and smacked his back. "Yeah, she's a real weapons nut. Hey, you got those scissors that I used to use all the time for stuff?" He nodded and handed them to me after getting them from the back. They were sturdy things, good enough to cut through some metals. "You mind if I buy them off you?"

He shook his head. "Nah, ya can just take 'em. I have my own pair anyways. What do ya need them for anyways?"

I pocketed them. "Just good to have my old tools sometimes. If I ever need to do work, I'll use them. That, and I needed a good pair of scissors for something I dealt with earlier this week." I made a snipping motion with my fingers. "I have to make sure he'll keep his end of the deal."

Otto looked confused for a second before Yang told him. "She told the dude that she would castrate him if he went back on the deal." Otto grimaced and held his legs together.

"That's a rather brutal deal you made. What did he want from you?"

"He wanted me to be his toy. That and he's just a general sleazebag, you know, like those people that think they are always in the right and don't tolerate any others."

He nodded sadly. "Aye, I know what you talk about. And I'm guessing you won your bet."

I motioned over to Yang. "I did, and she profited from it greatly. There was a betting pool I didn't know about until just before the fight and she made a pretty penny off of me. She's buying stuff for her team today with some of it. And my side of the deal was that he didn't bother me at all, for the rest of our time in Beacon if I won. I give him a month and a half before he starts changing his ways."

Ruby came up, with a few parts in her arms. "I'd like these please!" Otto went to the register and rung her up before accepting the cash from Yang who puckered her lips at how expensive Ruby had been. She got more than Blake and Weiss had gotten combined.

"We heading back to Beacon after this? I want to keep some of this money for tomorrow at least."

I nodded and took the bag that Otto was holding out. "Yeah, sounds like a good plan. I'll see if Jaune is willing to help me cook tonight. We should have some stuff for chicken alfredo." We said goodbye to Otto and went back to Beacon. Jaune was on his bed in a tank top and shorts, sweating profusely.

"Welcome back. Did you have a good day out?" Pyrrha had just come out of the bathroom with her hair up in a towel and her sleep clothes on.

"Yeah, it was a good day out. I picked up some scissors from Otto's shop that I used to use all the time. How was Jaune today?" I put the scissors on the desk and kicked off my shoes.

"He definitely needs to improve, but I know he can do it. He shows great potential." She looked over at Jaune and smiled. He tiredly smiled back, lifting himself with a grunt.

"I think I'm going to turn in early today after my shower. I'm pretty sore." He grabbed his stuff and went to the bathroom.

"You going to be up for eating dinner with Team RWBY Pyrrha? I said that I was going to make some chicken alfredo if we still have the stuff for it." I put on some slippers, I think they were mine. Nora and I had similar slippers, so they might be hers.

"That sounds lovely. When should I expect it to be ready?"

I glanced at the clock and said, "About forty-five minutes I guess. Could you tell Ren and Nora where I'll be. I doubt they're still in the kitchen."

"Of course." She pulled out her scroll and I left the room, heading for the kitchen. I grabbed the chicken from the freezer and sat it in the microwave to thaw it out. Bringing out a pan and adding some oil to it, I set it on the stove and turned it to medium heat. The microwave went off soon after the oil had gotten to temp and I sliced the chicken into small chunks, adding them to the pan. The sizzling was heard and soon after the smell of cooking chicken was wafting through the air. I added the spices to it and when it was finished put it on a plate to rest.

Bringing out some garlic, milk, and chicken stock, I added them to the pan and let them mix somewhat together and come to a simmer before putting in the noodles. I let those cook for a few minutes before adding in some cream and salt and pepper to taste. After the sauce had set up, I dished them up to eight different plates, sprinkling some parmesan on them along with some parsley after distributing the chicken as evenly as possible.

"That smells divine." Pyrrha had taken her seat at the table set up and I handed her a portion.

"Yeah, I hope it tastes as good as it smells. We might have to bribe you into cooking our meals on the weekends." Yang had sat herself next to Pyrrha, with Ruby sitting next to her. Blake and Weiss took up the end seats.

"Like I'd do that. You know how to cook for yourself Yang, this isn't going to be a normal deal." Nora and Ren were the last to sit down and I plopped myself down after handing them their portions.

"Yeah? And what would you say if I said I didn't know how to cook?" She slurped up a noodle.

"I'd call BS. I was told by Qrow that you once burned a hole through the counter while trying to cook, but you got better after that." I dug in, smiling at the taste. Still got the skills.

She coughed up a bit of sauce. "I can't believe he told you that. The jerk."

I shrugged. "At least it's better than nearly burning down the house when your semblance activates."

She let her head hit the table, holding her hair to the side so it didn't get in the food. "Seriously, is he never going to let me live that down. It was once! When I was eleven!"

Talk around the table went well after her outburst. It was really feeling like a small family we had built together now. If only Blake and Weiss would speak to each other more instead of only when they were practically forced to. It was better than the small glares Blake would send to the white themed girl, but it needed to be better. They need to be ready for anything.

Cardin passed through when we were just talking after having finished our meal. He looked like he wanted to mess with us but I just made a snipping motion and he went away. I remembered that I still had to have a talk with Ozpin and excused myself from the group, going back to the room to put my shoes back on.

0-0

Ozpin was sitting at his desk with the figures again. The number of boxes had grown, with figures of students piling up in each. He was still vexed on how Miss Arc was denying everyone that came to her. She was an extremely picky student, from what he could tell by watching the footage. The elevator dinged and he swiped all the figures into the closest boxes before stowing them away. Miss Arc walked out of the elevator in some casual clothes, as she had gone out to Vale today.

"I hope your day has been good, Headmaster. Would it be possible to talk with you?" She sat down, implying she wouldn't take no for an answer.

"Of course, just make yourself comfortable. Let me just do a few things." He reached over to a hidden switch and turned off the bugs in the room. He left the video surveillance running though.

"I remembered some things after our previous chat. Torchwick has a helper, but she's out of town at the moment. Short, Neapolitan themed most of the time, wields a parasol with reinforced canopy and a blade in the center. Mostly works by deflecting attacks and redirecting force before slashing or stabbing. Semblance is another illusion of some sort, she can make herself look completely different and her preferred disguise is a black-haired girl with emerald eyes and pigtails. Wears black and white when she's in that getup. I don't know if she can make herself look taller, but if she can't then it should be easy to find her if she pops around a corner and an anti-illusionist follows."

Ozpin jotted this down on his scroll and on a piece of paper. "I assume that you learned of this while infiltrating the White Fang. How high were you in the ranks?"

"Decently high, I can point out a few hideouts in Vale if you give me a map. I also got word from a member that Adam Taurus is out of Vale, heading away currently. He's got a decent number of troops though, so his camp is large. He's by a village that's near Forever Fall but should be further by tomorrow. I suggest that he be removed as a threat immediately as he is quite a difficult opponent."

"I will send some specialist forces along with Peter to his position. We have been trying to pin him down for a long time, but we haven't had the best of luck in doing so. This member that you got into contact with, does he pose a threat?"

She shook her head, leaning back in her seat. "No, Tukson doesn't pose a threat. In a few months' time, when he sees just how far the Fang has gone, he will want to leave Vale and head to Menagerie. I hope that he makes it there safely, as the Fang doesn't take its runaways lightly."

"That they do not, Miss Arc." Ozpin took a look at his boxes. He hoped that she would leave soon so he could figure out this puzzle. "I would like to know how you figured out Amber is being held here."

She huffed, rubbing her eyes with her hands. "Lots of speculation really. I have many hunches, but only about half of them ever end up being true. The other half are either close or they don't happen at all. And for where I know that the Tale of the Seasons is true, every tale has at least a seed of truth somewhere inside it." She leaned forward now, placing her arms on the desk. "When do you think it'll be a good time to tell Jimmy about this development?"

Ozpin shook his head. "Not now, that is for sure. James does not take well to surprises, even less so if it's something like this right now. He will most likely learn of this when he arrives for the Vytal Festival." There was a vibration from his pocket and he checked it.

A piece has been taken. I'll be back in a few days.

"Good news, it seems that Qrow took care of our first problem. Perhaps he can go with Peter to take care of the camp."

"It does sound like a good decision, if he can get there at the same time as Port. Otherwise, keep with the original plan. It won't do them any good to go unprepared. Do you have any candidates in mind for the place of Dorothy?"

"Dorothy?"

"The maiden, I believe that the name fits. Oh, you also need to improve the security of Beacon's servers. I was able to hack into them in one class." Ozpin nodded and Echo took a look at the bin slightly showing. "So, those the figures you have of the students?"

" _Curse you Glynda."_ He sighed and pulled the bin out, placing it on the desk. Echo took a figure out, one of the various people that had confessed to her the previous week. "I assure you that these are for purely strategic reasons."

"I doubt that Ozpin. If they were, they wouldn't need to be this detailed. But no need to fear, I am also in the business." She picked out the Pyrrha figure and placed it beside the Jaune figure. "I give you Arkos, the ship that will sail come hell and highwaters."

"I am shocked. Am I in the presence of another shipping master?"

She grinned and spun some students around. "Sit, Ozpin, and let me tell you of **all** the ships."

0-0-0-0

Omake: Calling Home

Jaune and I were sitting on a bench out in the gardens after Oobleck's class. He was wringing his hands together nervously. "Calm down Jaune. If you look like you're going to have a heart attack, they're going to be extremely nervous." He took a few deep breaths to steady his nerves and nodded. I dialed up Dad's phone number.

It was answered quickly by dad, and I was holding it so that he could only see my face. "Hey Echo. Do you have any info on Jaune yet? We still haven't gotten anything here."

I nodded and gave a small smile. "Yeah dad, I got a lead. IT's sitting right next to me. Hey lead, how 'bout you say hi to the family?" I turned the scroll to face Jaune and he gave a weak wave.

"Hey dad. How are the girls?"

Dad just gaped like a fish before getting up and finding Juniper, shoving the scroll in her face. "Dear, what are you doing this for? Did Echo call you?" She looked into the scroll and her face lit up. "Jaune! Oh, my baby, where have you been? We were worried sick! Why didn't you leave a note saying where you were going? You could have at least called. Or not blocked our numbers!"

I rolled my eyes and turned the scroll back to face me. "He thought that you would carry him back home if he left a note saying where he was going. He's at Beacon with me. He's the leader of Team JNPER, or Team Juniper, if you want the word instead of the acronym."

"He's the leader of the team? It's my name?" she stopped when she realized something. "There were five letters in the. Teams are four people. What happened?"

"Ozpin messed up with the paperwork and we were up an extra person. I was one of the two possible candidates for the three-person groups before the teams were formed, and I beat him to it. My partners are Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie. Jaune here got paired up with Pyrrha Nikos, that girl on the front of the cereal boxes. She literally saved him by nailing his hoodie to a tree with her javelin."

"My boy got saved by her? Oh, now I have to meet this young girl for myself." She looked happy, her boy had found himself a girl partner. Maybe she would be able to expect grandbabies from him after all.

Nicholas was in the background outside, yelling to the high heavens that his son had gotten into Beacon as well.

"I knew that you two would be happy. He kept on believing that you would be devastated that he got into Beacon. Oh, and one more thing before we sign off, Pyrrha unlocked Jaune's aura." Juniper's eyes shot open and she looked like she was going to say something before I waved. "Good talk! Bye." The call was ended and I put the scroll away.

Jaune poked my shoulder. "Was telling her that stuff really necessary? You could have left some of it out."

I smiled. "Yep, it was all necessary. Now unblock them, I'm sure that they would all like to talk to you themselves. I'm going to see what the hall's serving for sinner today." I strode off, leaving him to answer all their questions himself. Before I got out of range, I heard Juniper ask if he was using protection and I couldn't help but bellow a laugh. "Yep, totally needed to tell her that."

0-0-0-0

 **A.N. Hey all, I was thinking of making a side story to this story called Echo: After Dark that will focus on more mature content, as I have ideas that I cannot put in this T rated story. If you would possibly be interested, that will most likely be coming out in a few chapters if I do end up making it. Otherwise, I hope that you are enjoying the story so far.**


	9. Chapter 8- Another One Bites the Dust

**Reviewer Acknowledgement**

 **DamascusVazarin- Thank you for your input. I will post in the author's note when I have the first chapter written for Echo: After Dark, for those that do not follow me.**

 **Stormingknight- Thank you, I try to write things I would read myself. For your third point, I have absolutely no clue. How about we leave that to the readers to decide themselves?**

0-0-0

It wasn't even a full week after my fight with Cardin that he started bullying Jaune. It was small stuff at first, tripping him in the aisles or halls, bumping into him making him drop his books. Then it escalated two weeks in, with him blatantly shoving him, pushing him into his locker twice and sending it off somewhere, opening his shield in doorways. Cardin also bullied others more savagely, targeting Faunus students particularly hard.

He would find them when they weren't with their teams and get his team to surround them, then he would tug on their ears or horns or tails. Again, at first when he started this he did it in out of the way areas where he would be hardly seen by passersby. Then he did it blatantly, in the food hall to weaker teams even. I brought it up with Goodwitch, but she said that students needed to protect themselves like I did, just with less bets. I pointed out that there was a rule against fighting, but she countered that with saying it was for straight up fights and not stopping somebody from bullying you.

So, whenever I saw Cardin and his team try to group up on someone, I would walk over to them and talk to them. Cardin and his team would buzz off and I would be thanked. It left a bad taste in my mouth. _"Just protect yourselves people! You're in a school for Huntsmen and Huntresses for fucks sake!"_ I couldn't do this for Jaune though, I had to make sure he stopped them himself. I wouldn't knock this part in the branches off, for the butterfly effect can be much to unstable

I had also taken to carrying the scissors around with me, just for when Cardin thought he could start getting away with messing with me again. They were easily visible within my pocket. We had also discovered more about my semblance, the finicky thing that it is. I actually had trouble when facing off against Weiss when she used her glyphs and Dust attacks. If it wasn't a physical hit, like a punch or a slash, it could get me directly, and Weiss used fire and lightning often against me. I had to forgo using Jolder against her no matter how much I had filled up on momentum, just because it was the best conductor I had and she would punish me blocking a fire attack with a lightning attack right after.

I was still winning all my matches, don't get me wrong. I had even set up some spars against second year students with Goodwitch acting as a ref, and I still won those. We were debating on whether I could fight against a third year when they were available, but they were mostly out on missions right now and the ones that weren't were too busy with classes and other matters. I had faced against Yatsuhashi, and he was the toughest second year I faced. He had this gravity semblance that he can focus on a single enemy, basically holding them down so he could swing his massive blade at them. After beating him, I went out with Team CFVY to get some drinks.

Right now, Team RWBY and my team were eating lunch after a particularly boring lecture from Port and an easy class of Dust 101. Peach rotated Dust 101 with the Medical class every day, but she was still never there. There had also been a note on the board saying that we would soon be going out to collect some sap samples for her in Forever Fall. Ozpin never got back to me about the deal with Adam, but I assumed that it was taken care of. Halfway through our meal, we heard Velvet a few tables down being bullied by Cardin.

"Ow, stop it, that hurts!" She was holding onto her tray tightly and standing on her toes to make sure she wasn't being held up by her ears.

"Haha, I told you guys they were real! Look at this freak." Cardin took the tray out of her hands and tossed it to Sky, who was sitting on the table. "You guys think she has a tail too?"

Blake was seething. "Absolutely disgusting."

Weiss was glaring at Cardin. "Absolutely barbaric, it's a wonder how he got in here at all to begin with."

I slammed my cup down and stalked over to the group. "Winchester!" I almost ripped my skirt I pulled the scissors out so fast. "Let her go."

He snarled but complied. "Come on guys, my appetite is ruined." He took his team with him, but threw the tray back at us. I let it hit me instead of hitting Velvet.

I ushered velvet over to our table and sat her down, introducing her. "Hey guys, this is Velvet Scarlatina from Team CFVY. Velvet this is my team and Team RWBY." I let them talk to each other and tell her their names while I went to get her a new tray, picking a salad and sandwich with some grape juice to drink. I put it in front of her and sat back down to finish my meal off.

"Thank you Echo, Coco is in detention and Yatsu and Fox are in the forge right now." She began to pick at her salad shyly.

"No problem Velvet, always happy to help a friend. If this situation ever happens again, don't be afraid to sit with us. We don't bite, or at least I don't before the second date." I winked and she blushed.

"Are you serious Echo? Why are you talking about that while I'm here?" Jaune held his head in his hands, and the red could be seen between his fingers.

"She knows I don't mean it Jaune. Lighten up." I polished off my sandwich and downed the rest of my drink. "You need to take care of your Cardin problem."

"What? What problem?" He looked around shiftily, like he was fooling someone with his weak denial.

Pyrrha put a hand on his shoulder. "Jaune, Cardin has been bullying you for the past few weeks. We've all seen it."

"What? Nah, we're just messing around." He just shook his head and waved his hand.

"He's knocked your books out of your hand in a busy hallway." Ren, pointing out the defilement of text.

"He opened your shield in the doorway of Professor Ports classroom." Nora said while trying to balance three grapes on her nose.

Ruby finished munching on her cookie before adding in the last thing. "And he's shoved you into your locker. Twice."

"Yeah, and I didn't land that far from the school. And besides, he messes with everyone." He picked up his tray and made to leave.

"He doesn't mess with me." I said while I pulled out my scissors and made a show of cleaning them with a napkin.

He skulked off, but not before murmuring, "Nobody messes with you, perfect student and daughter…"

I slumped in my seat when he had moved out of eyesight. It really hurt seeing Jaune like this, and there was nothing I could do to help him because it was me that was causing it. He didn't 'need' my help and he didn't want it at all. Resting my head on the table and covering my face with my arms, I muttered "Nobody's perfect, Jaune, not even me."

Velvet patted my back and gave me a small smile. "I'm sure he'll come around sooner or later. All he needs is some time to see that you're just as human as he is."

I couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Really Vel, just as human as him?"

She was confused before she realized what I meant and she smacked me. "You know what I mean! No need to get technical with me."

"It's part of my many character traits, behind sarcastic and observant." She rolled her eyes but didn't say anything further. We finished with lunch and she wished us luck in combat class. I probably wasn't going to fight today, Goodwitch had taken to calling me up less after my multiple wins. She started to call Pyrrha up more often, and I guess that it will be me next month after Pyrrha's win streak is established. After gathering our weapons and changing into our combat gear, we sat down in the bleachers.

"If Miss Rose and Miss Nikos would enter the arena." Yep, it was Pyrrha today. I got out my scroll and began to type up a message to Qrow.

'Blackbird, do you have info on doc?' I glanced up and saw Ruby dash at Pyrrha for a low swipe, but it was deflected by Pyrrha's shield and Pyrrha got a swipe in on Ruby. My scroll buzzed.

'Pretty close, we think. Should find the entrance in the next few days. You'll be on point for infil.' The message was followed by an emoji of night vision goggles.

'Affirmative. Standing by.' When I looked back up, Ruby had been flung back from a shield bash to the face. She landed outside of the ring and Pyrrha was declared the winner. Pyrrha should give herself a challenge and not use her semblance. Thinking of it, so should I. I'll start sparring with Ren I guess.

"Good work again, Miss Nikos. Next up, Mister Arc and Mister Winchester." Jaune shakily made his way onto the stage while Cardin had his usual swagger. Jaune held his shield in a straight arm directly in front of his face, high enough that he couldn't even see Cardin. When Goodwitch called for the match to begin, Cardin hit the shield directly with his mace, jarring Jaune's arm and dropping his aura by five percent. I wanted to give him advice, but I had to shut myself up. I would just be bothering him in his eyes, and butting into something that wasn't my business.

But it was so hard, watching him get beat down by that sack of shit Winchester. Literally all he had to do was deflect and dodge the mace, get in a few hits in lightly armored sections with Crocea Mors, and then back up. He didn't even think about using the shield to bash him when he was in range to do so. I know he had seen me bash people with Jolder, so it didn't make sense why he didn't do it with that chunk of metal that was practically useless to him otherwise. It was like he wasn't even drawing on Pyrrha's training, which had been happening!

The shield was knocked out of his grasp and sent skidding off stage. He got nimbler, yes, but still engaged in unfavorable situations. His aura reserves were whittled down, and then he got in a weapon lock with Cardin, on his knee and holding Crocea Mors above his head. "Just give up Arc."

"No!" Jaune struggled to push the mace away from him, the strain visible in his neck muscles.

"Then this is the part where you lose!" Cardin pulled back a leg.

"Over my dead-!" Jaune was cut off as Cardin's knee impacted his stomach. He dropped Crocea Mors and grabbed at his injury while Cardin raised his mace above his head, ready to smash Jaune into the floor.

"That is quite enough, Mister Winchester!" Goodwitch came into the arena and Cardin lowered his mace while walking away from Jaune slightly. "Mister Arc, it has been weeks now. Please watch your aura on your scroll if you are unable to see the board. Gauging your aura will allow you to decide when to go on the offense… or when to go to a more defensive strategy. We wouldn't want you to get eaten by an Ursa now, would we?"

Cardin scoffed and lugged his mace onto his shoulder. "Speak for yourself." He made his way back into the stands.

Goodwitch shook her head disapprovingly before looking to the seated students. "Remember that the Vytal Festival is only a few short months away. It won't be long before students from the other kingdoms start arriving in Vale, so keep practicing! Those of you that decide to compete in the tournament will be representing Beacon and all of Vale!" The bell rang, and students began making their way out of the room. Jaune was still sat on the floor, looking glumly at his scroll, the flashing red illuminating his face. I let Pyrrha go to him while I went to put my stuff up.

"I don't understand how Echo can be such a badass all the time, and then Jaune is just… Noodle Boy." I had walked in when Yang was talking to the rest of her team. "Wouldn't it make sense if she can do all these super cool things that Jaune would too? Even if he has a different semblance?"

"Uh, Yang-" Ruby held up her hand when she saw me behind her sister, but she was cut off.

"It would make sense right now if someone told me that he never went to combat school or got training, but then he wouldn't be here, right? Did the badass gene skip him and go straight into Echo?"

I felt my face go stone cold. "Xiao Long." Venom dripped from those two words.

She stiffened up and turned around slowly. "Oh, uh, hey Echo. Didn't know you were there. How ya doing?"

"You would know that I was here if you listened to your sister. You know, your sibling that you love very much and would punch somebody in the face if they badmouthed her? Yeah, she was going to tell you that I was listening to you badmouth my brother."

She looked to Blake and Weiss for some help, but they just gave her looks that said, 'You got yourself into this mess, you get yourself out of it.' "Well… I mean, Jaune isn't a total lost cause? His heart is where it matters most?" She was grasping at straws, desperately trying to find something good to say about him.

"You're walking on this _Weiss_ here, Yang. Don't _Blake_ through it, be careful where you tread." Walked away, storing my weapons and changing back into my uniform. My departure was met with silence until Yang spoke up again.

"Did, did she just warn me and make puns? Does that mean I'm good or should really watch out?" A few 'I don't know sounds' met her questions and she just huffed. "Great, thanks for the help girls. Really feeling the love here."

0-0-0

The Battle of Fort Castle was brought up in Oobleck's class, and Jaune made a fool of himself once again. Cardin was on the receiving end of some laughter as well when he was reprimanded by Pyrrha and then he sulked. Blake and I told the rest of the failure of General Lagune. "Yes, you two are quite correct! Now, who can tell-" Oobleck was cut off by the bell and Cardin made to leave, his hand clenched in anger. "Mister Winchester and Mister Arc, if you two could stay here for a moment for assignment of additional readings."

We filtered out, but Pyrrha decided to wait for Jaune. "Take him to the rooftop. He likes looking at the stars." I slipped this to her and she gave a nod before waving us off, making our way to the mess hall for dinner. I decided to go without eating today and went back to the room, getting into some comfortable clothes before heading out to the gardens for a walk. I found a nice bench to rest at and laid back on it, looking up at the stars.

I had read some astrology books years ago, just to find some formations in the sky. They had symbol of warriors, like a sword and a shield, but they also had signs of the Grimm. The brightest star in the sky that was basically the north star was the tip of The Great Stalker of the Sky's stinger. It was at these times, where I was all alone with nothing to distract me from my thoughts that I felt like all my years were catching up to me. And next month was just another reminder of how old I was, my birthday. I avoided telling everybody when it was, but Jaune will probably warn them anyways. I held an arm over my face and gave a sigh.

The clack of something against stone tipped me off that I wasn't alone anymore. "It seems strange that we meet like this again. Tell me, what is your motive for being here tonight?" Ozpin stood there, a few feet away, leaning on his cane and staring at me.

"Just wanted to take a break from the student life for a few hours, take a gaze at the stars, let Jaune breathe without me apparently." I sat up and clasped my hands together. "With all my knowledge and years, I can't help him because I am the one he is trying the hardest to beat. It won't matter what I say or what I can teach him, he doesn't want it from me. I'm just the perfect kid and he's stuck in my shadow."

Ozpin clicked his tongue against his teeth and sat beside me. "Then let him live without you trying to help him. If he makes it, then he makes it. If he doesn't, then he can come to you for help or you can be there for him if he falls too far to come to you. And it doesn't make your knowledge any less, or your sixteen years alive. It's just him trying to make his life."

I huffed and rubbed my hands together before clasping them together again. "I know, I know. I really do want him to be himself and learn from life lessons all the while, but some life lessons shouldn't be learned this early in on life, and I feel like they're going to be coming soon. I can feel it in my soul."

He hummed and held his cane in both hands, looking at the weapon. "Trust me, Miss Arc, we will be here to make sure that nothing like that happens. You are all just first year Huntsmen and Huntresses in training. There is a safety net here." He pressed a button hidden on the cane and it popped open at the head, revealing some moving gears. "Do you know what this is, Miss Arc?"

"That's your weapon. I have a feeling that it wasn't what you were asking about though, right?"

"You are indeed correct, but good instinct nonetheless. This is more than just my weapon, it is also a key." He held the open portion so that I could see it better. "Do you see this open area where a gear can fit?" I nodded and he moved his cane back, closing the hatch. "If I should ever hand this to someone, know that I trust them implicitly. This is the key to the ultimate fail-safe in our arsenal. Do I need to tell you who to give it to should I ever hand it to you?"

"No sir, I understand who to give it to." I did. I would give it to Qrow. He knows exactly what to do with it.

"Good, good. I heard earlier that you messaged our friend. I will be sending you with Team CFVY when the opening is found."

"Understood sir. What will happen if it interferes with the trip to Forever Fall for Professor Peach?" It was likely that it would, since Qrow had said that they were close to finding the tunnel.

"You will be given a pass for that, and your team will be told that you are being sent on a training mission with a second-year team to strengthen bonds. I understand that you have already made some bonds with them."

"Yes sir, and just today I helped Velvet Scarlatina with a situation involving our resident blunt trauma case. I do hope that he fixes this problem soon."

"So do I, Miss Arc, so do I." He took a glance at his watch and stood up. "It was delightful yet again to talk to you in such a location, perhaps we could make some scheduled talks out here. I must be on my way though, more file work to complete." He gave a slight nod to me and I to him. He left off, the clacking of his cane growing dimmer as he got further away.

I sighed and laid back on the bench again. " _Well, now I know how to get the relic I guess. Won't do me any good though, I don't know how to use it and it would probably destroy me if I tried._ " I stayed there for another hour, just looking up at the stars and tracing the patterns I had learned. Just as I was about to get up and leave, there was the sound of hurried footsteps heading my way. I looked up and saw Ruby running towards me.

"There you are! Pyrrha was worried because you weren't in your room and you hadn't sent her or Ren or Nora a message about where you went. I ran into the Headmaster and he told me where to find you." She looked down at me. "What are you doing out here?"

I gave her a smile. "Just some stargazing, nothing more." I got up and brushed my back off. "Come on, let's get back to the dorms. We still have class tomorrow and I have a date with my futon." She nodded and followed me. "Is there a reason you decided to come help look for me?"

She just looked down at her feet. "I… kinda wanted to apologize for Yang earlier today, but I just couldn't speak to you before. You seemed angry, like, really angry. The kind of angry a parent is when their kid does something really stupid."

I sighed again, I've been doing that a lot lately. "Yeah, stress has been building up I guess. It doesn't really excuse me though, I shouldn't have said those things like I did. I'll be sure to apologize to her tomorrow when I get the chance. But she should learn not to speak ill of others, because they may just come around and surprise her later on."

"You spout all these lines of wisdom like a fortune cookie. Do you eat a lot of fortune cookies?"

I laughed and rubbed her head. "No, Rubes, I do not eat substantial amounts of fortune cookies. I am well-read though, and I try to keep myself sharp by engaging in mental problems every day."

"Cool. Maybe you can help me some more with that, 'cause the last time we studied was that time for Doctor Oobleck's class and Weiss treated me better after that."

"Sure Rubes, I'll help you out. Just send me a message when you decide on a time and place." She just nodded and we quietly walked the rest of the way. She entered her room and said goodnight before shutting the door. When I entered my dorm room, the others were already there but Jaune had gone to sleep early.

"Hey Echo! Where were you, we looked like everywhere." Nora was sitting on her bed, bouncing lightly.

"I was out in the gardens, and Headmaster Ozpin and I had a little chat. I had gone out for a walk and got to stargazing before that. Sorry for not informing you on where I was."

"Nah, it's fine. I disappear on Ren all the time." She rolled her neck out, emphasizing all.

"Is there a reason Jaune is already asleep?" I pointed over my shoulder as I took off my shoes.

"Yes, he stated he was rather tired and was getting up early tomorrow so he retired early for the night." Pyrrha grabbed my arm before I had gotten around to taking my shirt off. "May I speak with you for a moment?"

I looked over to Nora and Ren, but they shook their heads. They didn't know she was going to do this obviously. "Sure. Here or somewhere else?"

"The bathroom should do just fine." I nodded and motioned for her to enter. After I had gotten in and closed the door she took a seat on the lid of the toilet. In a hushed voice, she asked me, "Did you know that your brother used faked transcripts to get into Beacon?"

"I had a hunch, so yes. I confirmed my hunch the first time I had a talk with Headmaster Ozpin, and asked him why he let my brother in with forged transcripts."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?"

I shook my head. "Because it wasn't my secret to tell. Jaune had to tell it to someone himself, and it's obvious now that he trusts you. And, as I said before, Jaune wants to get somewhere without me being there shadowing his every move."

Her brow furled. "And you decided to let him go into initiation with no aura? No combat training? What if he hadn't met me, what if I hadn't saved him from that fall? What if I hadn't unlocked his aura?"

"Then he would be dead." She shook when I said that. "There are many 'what ifs' we look back on in life. I have found that it is better to not ponder on those, instead, look at 'what can you do now' to improve yourself and the team. Learn from what you have done and don't repeat mistakes."

Before I opened the door, her soft voice cut through the silence that had built up. "What would you have done if he did die?"

I stopped, with my hand on the doorknob. "I would have continued on. It's what he would have wanted." I left her to sit on that as I finished getting ready for bed. She came out a few minutes later with slightly red eyes and changed into her sleep clothes before slipping into her bed quietly. Ren and Nora had already gotten into bed, so that left me to turn off the lights. "Night all." I covered up with a blanket and put my head down, falling into a dreamless sleep once more.

I was woken up by someone stumbling around the room. I grabbed for my scroll to check the time. Six a.m. on the dot. I had taken to waking up at seven nowadays, so now I was down an hour of sleep. When I lifted my head to see who it was, they left out the door, quietly closing it behind themselves. I looked over to the beds and saw that Jaune's was empty, so it was him that had left this early. No doubt to go wait on Cardin.

I wasn't going to go back to sleep, so I got up and took a quick shower. After drying off and putting on my uniform I sat at the desk and listened to some music. Pyrrha was, yet again, the next one up. "Do you know where Jaune has gone?"

"No, I woke up when he was stumbling around in the dark. He left before I could ask him what was up. We'll see him later though, so don't worry about him just yet." She just nodded and headed to take her shower. This basic conversation went down with Ren and Nora as well when they got up and then we went to get some breakfast.

We didn't see Jaune when we went to our seats, and Pyrrha stood there for a minute trying to look above all the other people there to see if Jaune was hiding somewhere. When she couldn't see him, she huffed and sat down, ferociously attacking her small meal. While I was taking a drink from my coffee, Jaune walked in behind Team CRDL holding a large stack of books.

"What is Fearless Leader doing?" Nora had half a pancake flopping out of her mouth, slurping it up with a strange finesse.

"I don't know, but we should probably find out." I made to go over to ask him, but my scroll went off. Checking it, I had to resist the urge to facepalm.

'We found it. Report to Ozzy ASAP'

"It seems that I won't be able to ask him myself. I've been called to the Headmaster's office. I'll talk to you guys later." I hurried out so they couldn't question me and went to get my weapons and combat uniform. I would probably be heading out right after briefing. Tossing my bag in the locker and stripping down as quickly as possible, I made sure to take inventory of my weapons. I needed some more fire and grav Dust for Jolder, Sol and Luna were fine, and I needed some more standard rounds for the rifle mode since I hadn't taken the time to restock those since the fight with Torchwick.

After gearing up, I headed to the armory. Making sure nobody was around, I entered the keycode to enter and slipped in. I picked up some standard rounds and the Dust I needed, filling up the mag and reserves before spotting a box labeled 'Gravity Dust Rounds'. I swiped that and emptied a mag of normal rounds before taking enough grav rounds for three mags. I made sure to take care putting in the grav rounds into the mag, I really didn't want them going off because of some stupid reason. The rest got put into a bandolier around my waist.

Slipping back out of the armory, I almost ran into Goodwitch. "I see that you have taken some liberties with your clearance level."

"It's better to have something vital and not need it than to have need of something and not have it. I'm covering all my bases." I started off for Ozpin's office, Goodwitch following behind me. "Are they already there and waiting on me, or am I the first to gear up?"

"Team CFVY has already made it to the briefing. We were waiting on you, but Ozpin sent me to get you when he saw you going into the armory." We got into the elevator and Goodwitch pushed the button. "Are you sure you are up to this? You may not just be facing Grimm."

I nodded. "If Qrow thinks that I am up for this, then I will defer to his judgement. He may be a drunk, but he's a damn good Huntsman. And yes, I know that we will most likely face more than just Grimm. IT's part of the job description." The elevator doors dinged and opened, revealing to us Team CFVY and Ozpin sitting around his desk. The boxes with the figures were hidden in a secret wall panel we had installed next to the elevator.

"Wait, we're bringing Echo on this mission? You said we were bringing somebody more experienced than us, Headmaster." Coco took off her glasses to look at Ozpin. "You're telling us that we're bringing a freshman straight into serious Grimm territory?"

"Miss Adel, while I do understand your concern, let me tell you that it is not necessary. Miss Arc most definitely will be of use to you on this mission." I took my seat and he clapped his hands together. "Now that you have all made it here, I must tell you that this mission is now highly classified. Any and all intel found on this venture will be either destroyed or given to the Huntsman that is escorting you to be given to me." We nodded in understanding and he continued, bringing up a hologram of some tunnels. "Our teams found this entrance below a building on Mount Glenn. We have reason to believe that an enemy of the kingdoms is hiding somewhere at the end of it."

"Wait, again, you're telling us that you want Echo to go on this mission. Are we going to be fighting humans?"

"Miss Adel, please do not interrupt me again. Yes, there is a chance that you will be fighting humans, Faunus, or the White Fang. I ask that you be on guard at all times and that you fight with no holds barred. If you see anyone, you are to eliminate them as silently as possible. We have not made any discoveries on how deep this cave system goes or what is at the end, so this mission will have no time estimate. Miss Arc, is there anything that you remembered about these caves or what is at the end of them."

"Yes, I have. The caves actually used to be mining tunnels, so there will be mine carts and tracks down there that we can follow towards the end. There is supposed to be some sort of drop that gets us below sea level to go through a tunnel that will spit us out on the island. I expect us to meet heavy Grimm resistance in these caves, but not much else. There had been talk of some sort of security force on the island, but nothing concrete. That's all I have."

"Damn, we've got us an intel hog here. Anything you aren't telling us Echo?"

"You will have time to converse on the Bullhead ride to Mount Glenn. Briefing is over, I hope to see you all again, good luck." Ozpin turned off the hologram and Goodwitch ushered us out of the office and into the elevator. It was cramped with five people in there, especially Yatsuhashi.

When we got out of the elevator, Goodwitch ushered us to the landing pads. "You will be met by the Huntsman when you land. We can't get you directly there, so you will have some walking to do."

"Hey, I would be surprised if we didn't have to beat dirt. We have meals and gear on the ride?"

"Yes, you have a few days' worth of meals and sleeping bags. I highly suggest you carry your own supplies, just in case you are separated from the group." We loaded up onto the Bullhead and she wished us luck, the door closing.

We checked the gear and food. Four days' worth of MREs and two canteens of water with some purifier tablets. I think the sleeping bags could have been thicker, but that was mostly just preference. "So, you going to tell us how you know the stuff you said up there?" Coco was leaning against the side of the Bullhead.

I rolled my eyes and shrugged my shoulders. "Sure, why not? You know how I used to live in Vale for some time before I got accepted into Beacon?" They nodded. "Well, when I first got into Vale six or so years ago, I was followed by some of the White Fang. I gave them the slip a few times, but they still followed me for a few years. My curiosity got the better of me and I disguised myself, infiltrating the ranks. Most of the info I have was gathered in that time."

Coco whistled appreciatively. "Dang, girl, not even a full Huntress and you were already infiltrating a terrorist organization and gathering intel. It's almost like you planned it."

I shrugged again. "It always pays to be prepared. And I also found out why they were following me. They saw that I was armed and figured that I was training to be a huntress, and they want more and more Faunus with aura and training in their forces. They were wanting to recruit Echo, but they kind of got Abyss." I ran my hand against my braid. "I died my hair black and went without the headphones. Darker clothes. I also let my hair down. Anything to get away from what I normally look like would work."

Velvet gasped. "Abyss Ritz? The rumored assassin?"

I stifled a chuckle. "Yeah, totally an assassin. I lied through my teeth on that part, they totally believed me though. I would love to see the looks on their mugs when they realize it."

"So, were the White Fang helping clean out the caves for transport, and that's why you know this stuff? Or was it just coincidence that they knew?"

"Half-half. They cleaned out a good portion, but the other half was already clean. They were just in the area and got conscripted into it. I can't say much else, so we should probably get ready to move. We don't want to be getting our stuff ready when we get there."

"Yeah, I get you there. Alright guys and gals, since we're meeting our Huntsman there, he's the one in charge. You listen to him. He's not there, you listen to me. I'm not there, listen to Echo here. Since Ozman asked her to be here, I feel confident she's a good Huntress in her own right. Gear up and prepare to disembark." Everyone strapped on their packs, with Yatsu and I having to put our heavy weapons beneath the packs. He was still able to draw it with little difficulty with the pack still on, but I couldn't really, so I would have to deal with my swords and fists when I was carrying it.

The rest of the ride was relatively quiet, the only sound being the engines and some radio chatter from the cockpit. When the Bullhead began to slow down, I hiked the pack back up onto my shoulders. The pilot craned his head back to us and called out. "We're opening the doors in five. Good luck." Five seconds later the doors opened, and we all jumped out. It was a short drop onto the concrete and we were immediately looking around for threats.

"Good to see you finally made it. Was beginning to think you wouldn't show up until tomorrow." Team CFVY whipped around to where the voice had come from but I just let my shoulders fall slightly before turning around slowly.

"Qrow, seriously, it was just a few hours ago that you sent us the message. No need to be so impatient." I pointed to our travelling companions. "This is Team CFVY as you know. Team CFVY, this is Qrow Branwen, the most drunk person you will ever lay eyes on."

"He doesn't look that drunk." Velvet was looking at him, her head tipped to the side.

Fox just scrunched up his nose. "Be lucky you can't smell him from here then. He's like a walking bar."

"Watch your mouth, kiddo. I will not hesitate to bring my bar breath all over your face." He took a swig. "Let's get moving, we're burning daylight and we have somewhere to be yesterday." We followed him down the street. "We're just a few blocks from the entrance of the cave system we're going into. It's under the Merlot Industries building, don't know how nobody knew about it before now."

We made it with no confrontations, possibly because Qrow had been here waiting for us and cleared out the local Grimm population out of boredom. The building was extremely run down, with pieces crumbling and falling to the ground, but it was still up surprisingly. Qrow motioned me forward. "I finally get to use this for something." I turned on the spotlights in the ears of the headphones, bathing the rocky tunnel in light.

"Well, that's pretty useful for us non-Faunus." Coco was carrying her weapon in its handbag form, swinging it lightly. "How long will that last?"

"For as long as it needs to. I upgraded the battery some time ago to run on Dust after the initial charge goes out, and I brought a few vials." The tunnel we were in opened more and more the further we went, and mining equipment was beginning to show up. There were also signs of Grimm activity, some claw marks and chunks missing from cave walls. "We should be coming up on a mine track sometime soon. We follow that down, and we're going the right way." There was a clacking sound and I stopped, holding my hand in a closed fist.

Everyone halted behind me and waited. There was another clacking sound, further away this time, but it was followed by another in a sort of pattern. I motioned for Fox, Yatsu, and Velvet to take the right wall while Qrow, Coco and I took the left wall. We inched our way further into the cave with my light turned off and Velvet leading her side while I led mine. The tunnel we were in opened up into another tunnel, forming a T-junction with the mine tracks in the new tunnel. Velvet and I peeked around the corners and saw that it was going down on my side.

Nobody was in sight so I turned my lights back on. I motioned for us to continue down my side, same formation, and we inched our way out into the new tunnel. I turned my light off again and pushed on, the clacking sound growing louder the further we went on. When we made a turn, we were met with the sight of a few White Fang grunts pushing a cart down the tracks. "Still don't know why there aren't any more of us here. We could get this done way faster if the higher ups got more people on this."

"Shut up and stop complaining. Do you want the Grimm to come down on us? The sooner we get this done, the sooner I can go back to my couch and watch some X-ray and Vav."

I counted five. I looked back to the others and saw they were waiting on me. I held up five fingers and waved Yatsu and Fox to take the two on the right while we took care of the other three. I unsheathed Sol and slid it against my mark's neck, activating the fire Dust so there wouldn't be any blood dripping. Qrow didn't have any finesse, and he just lopped off the dude's head. The others knocked out their marks.

"You guys know that they're probably going to die by Grimm later on if we just leave them here. Why knock them out?" I wiped off the small amount of blood on my blade onto the uniform of my kill.

"We're not barbarians. Yatsu, get some rope and put them up somewhere high." He nodded and produced some rope from his pack, tying the White Fang up and hanging them from a tall beam. "There was no need to kill them."

I huffed. "Ozpin said no holds barred. I'm pretty sure that they would have tried to kill us if they got the chance. There's no use arguing over this, we need to keep moving." A little notification appeared in my mind, brought on by years of games. 'Coco will remember that'. We moved on, heading down the tunnel for probably a few miles, the only real markers being branches in the tracks. We didn't run into anyone else thankfully, and we got to the drop with time to spare.

"Should probably head down and then set up camp. Not much use heading out to the island in the middle of the night." Qrow pulled out a mat, throwing it onto a tall rock. "I'll take first watch from up here. Get on down there kiddos."

I jumped straight down while the others took ledges down. I let my gaze rove across the opening, looking for any Grimm or marks indicating Grimm activity, but there were none at all. "All's clear. Let's set up, eat, and get some sleep." Sleeping bags were rolled out and the stove was set up, heating the MREs that were quickly eaten. Fucking meatloaf MREs sucked, at least they had the brownie in them. "I'll take first watch after Qrow."

They thanked me and got into their bags, falling asleep quickly. Sleep for me came slower, but it still came. I was woken up what felt like minutes later by Qrow, who had set his mat down further away from the group. "Your watch kid." I grumbled but sat up and stretched, grabbing my weapons for the watch. I took up a position against the wall near the tunnel entrance and exit.

I hate night watch, it's freaking boring as all get up when nothing happens. Which is exactly what happened. I stood there for four hours doing nothing. I was told to go back to sleep by Coco when she came to take over my position, and I thanked her before I slid back into my bag for four more hours of sleep. These sleep hours were much better than the earlier ones, because when I was woken up I felt well rested. We had a breakfast of fiber bars and some sips from our canteens, I had to share mine with Qrow because all he had was alcohol and that did not go well with the fiber bars at all.

We packed up and were on the move within fifteen minutes. Further into this tunnel, lights started to come up at regular intervals against the wall and the beams became metal instead of wood. Wiring could be seen against the beams, some of the wires leading to the lights and some just seeming to disappear into the beam only to show up again later. Even further on, the stone ground was replaced with metal flooring and it was getting lighter naturally.

"Be ready, we're coming up on the exit." We turned a corner and were at a door with a small window set in it. Light filtered in through the window and we had to blink a few times to get readjusted to the brightness. "Be ready for cover fire." Coco shifted her purse into the minigun and pointed it at the door. I stepped to the side, hand on the handle. "One, two." I twisted the handle and she spun the gun up. "Three." I opened it and nothing happened, so I motioned for her to put her weapon away for now. Peeking out, I saw that we were in what appeared to be a shack on the side of a hill.

"Let's get moving. I'll update Ozpin on our position." Qrow stalked out from behind me and pulled out his scroll. His brow furled and he knocked his hand against his scroll. "Dang it, no reception. Something's probably blocking it."

I spotted a tower close by, a few miles down a path and sitting near a cliff. "That might be part of it. What say we take it down and see if there are any more nearby?" I was met with a chorus of 'ayes' and we went off to disable the tower. A few Grimm were between us and it, but they were killed easily by our group and we were soon at the base of the tower. A small control box was on one of the support legs and I walked up to it, opening it with a slash to the lock. "Let's see what we got here. Wires, more wires, and even more wires. I know exactly how to fix this!" I stabbed into the wires and a shower of sparks came out.

"Relax there! We could have just cut one and gotten the same result probably." Qrow pulled out his scroll again and scowled. "Still nothing." I climbed up the tower halfway and pointed out the other two towers. "Okay kiddos, the team takes the one to the West and we'll take the one to the East. Meet up back here once you're finished. Move." I jumped down and we made off to our tower.

We ran into a few Ursai and Boarbatusks along the way and decimated them, barely slowing down. However, when we finally got to the tower we were confronted by a tall white robot. "Intruders found. Eliminating threats." It pulled out a spear made of glowing blue energy and lunged towards us.

I sidestepped and Qrow jumped over it. I sliced its legs off while he brought his sword down to slice it in half. "Well, that's new I guess."

I picked the spear up and gave it a test spin, feeling the weight. It was much lighter than most other weapons of its size. "Yeah, we should probably expect to run into more of them now. They were probably alerted when the first tower went down and sent out to protect the other two. Team CFVY must have run into another one or a few. Let's get this down so you can talk to Oz." I brought the spear down on the control box, piercing it easily and slagging the metal. "Powerful energy weapon. Definitely do not want to get hit by it."

"Ditto." He pulled out his scroll for the third time and a grin came up on his face as he dialed a number. "Hey, we took down some jamming towers, you should be able to find the place now with scouting teams. We're going to keep moving."

"And what of Miss Arc and the others?"

"They're doing fine. Had to take care of a few White Fang on the way here. She and I killed ours while the others just knocked them out. Wasted effort if you ask me, but it's up to them I guess."

"Oh, what is this I hear? The intruders are making a phone call? And an Arc on my island, what a pleasure it will be to run some tests on you."

Qrow flinched. "Who is this?"

The person on the line tsked. "What manners you have. You barge onto my island and question who I am. I am the genius Merlot! And you have interrupted some of my testing, so I hope that you will pay me with a few new test runs of my newest serum. Bye!"

Qrow looked at his scroll and back up to me. "We need to get to the others now."

"Agreed." We rushed off back to the meeting spot, reaching it in just a few minutes this time. Team CFVY was sitting there, Coco, Fox, and Velvet were sweating lightly while Yatsu looked just fine. "We're about to have company. Get ready for a fight." As soon as the words left my mouth, the ground rumbled and we were thrown off our feet. A glowing green stinger was the first thing I saw, and I had to dodge out of the way before it hit me. A burning sensation was what I felt as it moved by my arm. "Deathstalker!"

We scattered and got a good view of the thing. It was larger than the Deathstalker that my team had faced in the forest and it looked even more angry. The tail was whipping back and forth, the golden stinger replaced by a glowing green stinger. There was also a plate of bone armor covering the part where the tail connected to the stinger, so it wouldn't be coming off any time soon. I had to dodge yet again as the stinger came barreling towards me.

Merlot's voice came over some sort of speaker somewhere. "Say hello to the new and improved Plaguestalker! It was the first real success I had with the serum. More armor, faster, spits acid!" It spat a glob of acid at Yatsu, who had to be pulled out of the way by Fox to avoid it. "I would be right angry if you managed to kill it, so if you would give a good fight and die in the end for the name of science, I would be delighted."

Qrow went to hit it, but his sword just bounced off it carapace. "Nothing we hit it with is doing anything!"

I brought a sword down on its leg, between two pieces of armor and green blood flowed out. It gave a shriek of pain and anger before swatting at me. I ducked, leaving the sword stuck there. "Go for accurate strikes against joining pieces! The underside of joints is the best spot." Qrow switched to his scythe and brought it under the Stalker, taking a leg off in one clean pull. I jumped up and slammed into my sword, putting it the rest of the way through the leg. While it was focused on us, Fox and Yatsu took out two more legs.

It fell to the ground with two legs and its claws scrambling at the earth underneath it. It tried to spit out more acid, but it just hit the ground and began to eat away at that. I threw my pack off and took out Jolder, bringing it to bear on the head of the Stalker. Pulling out the newly acquired grav Dust round magazine, I popped it in and pulled back the bolt, chambering a round. "Right now is the time where I would say it was a pleasure, but it really wasn't." I pulled the trigger, sending a round straight into an eye. The Stalker thrashed in pain and I chambered another round, pulling the trigger and sending another round into another eye. This continued on until I pulled the bolt back and sent it forth, pulling the trigger, only to receive a click in response. It didn't really matter though.

The Plaguestalker was dead, its head now destroyed from the inside out. I strapped Jolder to my arm as a shield and picked my pack back up. Qrow kicked at the disintegrating Grimm. "Were you using gravity rounds on that thing and not flying back?"

"Duh, Qrow, semblance remember? I was absorbing the recoil, and now I'm way over full, so I need to find the lab and take care of Merlot. If you could call in for a Bullhead right now, when we get back I'll get you something better than the swill you insist on putting in your flask." He couldn't pull his scroll out fast enough. "You all stay here and find an LZ for pickup. I'll be back in a few minutes." I tossed my pack to Yatsu, who caught it and put it with his own. I raced off, putting my ample reserve of energy into boosting my speed.

I searched the cliffs for an entrance and found it three minutes in. I swung in and ran along the metal platform, but not before taking the keys to the getaway Bullhead. I pulled out my scroll and sent a message to Qrow saying that we would actually be flying our way back in a commandeered transport. I found a discreet panel in the wall that lead up with stairs and into the observation chamber overseeing the main area where the Plaguestalker must have been kept.

I heard the sound of charging and ducked, spinning around on the floor to see Merlot standing there with a railgun in his hands. Before he got the chance to charge another shot, I threw Jolder at him and knocked the weapon from his hands. Well, it also took his hands, but semantics. He looked like he was going to say something into a microphone, but I went over to him and punched him in the face, shutting him up and breaking a few teeth.

"Well met, Merlot. You have not been a gracious host to us, so I expect you foresaw these exact results and rigged the island to explode. Now, that would be counterintuitive to my plans as I plan on taking some information back. Don't worry, I won't be needing to take you back and this island will explode as you planned. If you could just motion me over to the main terminal, I would be ever so grateful." He just shook his head and tried to speak again. Another punch to the face, this time knocking him out.

"How rude. Don't you know to listen to a lady when she asks nicely. If you don't then nasty things happen. Must be why he was presumed dead in the first place." I glanced around and spotted a terminal with a hand scanner on it. I picked up his right hand and placed it on the scanner, unlocking the terminal. I pulled out a drive and plugged it in, pulling out the entirety of the files. I also found a remote for detonating the island and I pocketed that. These sticky fingers will get me in trouble someday, but that day is not today. "Lovely talk we had. I'll see you in Hell."

I slid down the railing of the stairs and hopped into the Bullhead, and then tried to remember exactly how to pilot the thing. I had read manuals and flight instructions, but actually sitting in the pilot's seat was different than reading. After turning the key and flipping some switches, its engines whirred to life. I looked at the mess of buttons and levers, pushing a button at random. The doors slid open, so I pushed it again and it slid closed. _"Well, only way to figure out how to fly it is to use the acceleration and the flight stick."_

Pushing forward on the acceleration lever made the Bullhead fly forward out of the hangar, into the air above the water. I let back on it and the Bullhead went to hovering, so I pressed down on one of the pedals below my feet. The Bullhead went down and I let up quickly. Pressing the other pedal made it go up, so I kept my foot on that one and pulled on the stick to point it to where I had left the others. When I had gotten it pointed in the general direction and at a decent elevation, I pressed forward on the acceleration and flew to the LZ.

I saw a spot where some trees had been knocked down and lowered myself into that area. I opened the doors and leaned back to take a look at them. "Greeting all. Welcome aboard Air Echo! There will be no complementary snacks and no bathroom breaks, so if you ask me for either of those you are getting kicked out while we're still moving!" They hopped in and Qrow took the co-pilot seat. I shut the doors and lifted off, pointing the nose towards Vale.

"When did you learn to fly a fucking Bullhead kid?" He sat down and pulled out his flask.

I put my hand out to stop him from drinking. "No drinking as the co-pilot Qrow. Going to need you in all your Huntsman capacity when we get into Vale airspace. And to answer your question, I had a whole lot of time on my hands when I lived in Vale and I wasn't working. The library was my second home, and when it was closed I did a decent amount of reading online. I read a few manuals and flight books."

He kicked his feet up, barely missing some buttons as his feet landed on the dash. "Well, I'm not complaining then. I can fly, but it's like a drunk pelican. Pretty sure the kiddos in the back wouldn't appreciate it. What happened to Merlot?"

I smacked my forehead and rolled my eyes. "How could I forget about that?" I pulled the remote from my pocket and tossed it to Qrow. "Push the button on that, would you?"

He did so and loud explosions went off behind us. "What on Remnant was that?!" Coco stuck her head into the cockpit.

"That, my fashionista friend, was the sound of an island being utterly decimated with high-grade explosives!" I pumped a fist in the air. "Another one bites the dust!"

0-0-0-0

 **A.N. So, I'm sorry that it has been a full week since my last update but things have been happening this week from my friend coming back to the country after being gone for two months and running around and just general life stuff, I have been trying to find time and motivation to write. But, do not worry, for obviously it had happened!**


	10. Chapter 9- Hi Ho Silver, Away!

**Reviewer Acknowledgement**

 **King Kimi- Thank you!**

 **NTD Prime- I'm glad you're enjoying it.**

0-0-0-0

As we were making our way back to Beacon, and by extension Vale, I was wondering to myself if Oz would let me keep the Bullhead or if he would take it from me. "Hey guys?"

"Wha?" Qrow was laying back in his seat, dozing off.

"Do you think Oz will let me keep this? Be kinda cool to have my own Bullhead."

"I highly doubt that The Council would allow him to allow you to keep a Bullhead, Echo." Velvet said from the entryway.

"Hey, what they don't know about this won't hurt them. And it's mine fair and square. I liberated it from Merlot, who probably got it from someone else." I thought about what I would paint it in, for my own personal touch. "Think I should paint it in war paint pink or blue? Maybe zebra? A shattered glass look in blue with pink lines? Something that screams 'I am pretty and ready to fuck up your day real bad!'"

"If he does let you keep it, mind flying us down to Vale every now and again? Grabbing you would be much quicker than waiting on an airship for my shopping trips." Coco was inspecting her handbag for any scratches or dings while also filling back up on ammo.

"Then you're helping pay to fuel it. I am not giving you rides in Air Echo for free."

"Kid, are you really going to call it Air Echo? That just sounds stupid." Qrow scoffed and reached for his flask.

I knocked his hand away and tsked. "Yes, I will call it whatever I damn well please, and what did I tell you about drinking as my co-pilot?"

"Not to drink too much?" He asked hopefully.

I smacked the back of his head. "No. No fucking drinking or you're hoofing it all the way to Beacon yourself and Fox is my new co-pilot. And I'm plenty sure that he doesn't want to do that."

"You are correct." He spoke up from the spot he had taken, a part of the wall that had straps hanging against it.

"That, and I might just want to test out the weapons system on you, and I'm sure you wouldn't want that."

"Kid, you wouldn't dare. I'm your Huntsman for this little mission, and I think Ozpin would seriously punish you for that."

I laughed, pulling back on the throttle some. "Qrow, remember the last time I told you I would do something and you didn't believe me at first?" He nodded. "When I say I'm going to do something, you'd best believe I'm going to do it. Unless it's to an enemy that I'm saying something to, then I'm going to lie my ass off like there's no tomorrow." I was hit with another idea. "Maybe I could go with good old-fashioned camo! With a nice forest green base."

"Kid, you have problems."

I gave a hearty laugh at that. "And what Huntsman or Huntress doesn't?"

He thought on that for a second before lifting his shoulders slightly. "Fair point." He pointed his chin down to his chest and stretched his legs out. "Wake me up when we get into Vale airspace. I'm taking a nap."

Soon, his light snores were heard and Team CFVY was talking quietly in the back, so I had to just sit there in silence. You can't really be listening to music when you're supposed to be flying and waiting for air traffic control. Five minutes in, I got too bored and started to sing quietly to myself. "~Have you heard what they said on the news today? Have you heard what is coming to us all? That the world as we know it will be coming to an end. Have you heard? Have you heard~?"

The next few hours were spent in relative quiet, with Team CFVY deciding to get in a quick nap with Qrow and me singing the longest songs I knew off the top of my head. There was a crackle of radio static and my head snapped to the receiver. I took off my headphones and put the headset on. I nudged Qrow and he startled awake, nearly falling out of his chair. He picked up the other headset and put it on. "Unidentified aircraft, you are entering Vale airspace. State your codes and flight number or be prepared to be escorted to the nearest emergency landing zone to be detained."

"Vale air control, this is Qrow Branwen of the Huntsmen Corps. We procured this vehicle and are flying to Beacon landing pads to inform the Headmaster of a mission success. My codes are three-two-nine-five-seven and two-five-six-one-zero-B."

There was a brief silence as they ran the codes. "Copy, Qrow Branwen. You have been given permission to bring the aircraft in. Please lower altitude to thirty-five hundred feet."

"Copy." I kept the forward momentum going while I pressed down on the pedal to decrease altitude, keeping an eye on the gauge. Once we reached the specified altitude I let off the pedal and checked our flight path again. Still straight to Beacon."

"Qrow Branwen. Are you the Huntsman flying the aircraft?"

"Oh hell no."

"We need to know who is then."

I spoke into the mic again. "Air traffic control, this is Echo DeVris Arc. First year student at Beacon Academy, tutored for three years under Qrow Branwen and given flight permissions from Headmaster Ozpin." Qrow just looked at me like I was stupid, but I ignored him for a second.

"Let us confirm this." They were gone for a few minutes and we just got into view of the city. "Your background checks out and we have received confirmation that you are licensed to fly. Keep current trajectory and have a safe flight."

The static was gone and Qrow took his headset off. "Kid, seriously, that took some balls. How did you know Ozpin was going to have a license for you?"

"Oh, I didn't know." He smacked his forehead. "But, I do know that Ozpin has his ways of getting things done on short notice. He's got some mad procrastination skills." And he did. I watched him complete a whole stack of paperwork just an hour before they needed to be sent out to various locations. And the stack was huge.

"Whatever you say." He moved his hand to his flask. "Does this mean I can drink now?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, it means you can drink now. And I will be gracious enough to not kick you out. Be grateful." I craned my head back. "You hear that everyone? Air Echo is coming in to the landing zone. Please secure all belongings and prepare to disembark. Any and all luggage left behind will be kept and added to my personal inventory, so please be sure to pick up after yourselves. Cleaning fees for any messes or trash will be sent directly to your team leader for direct payment. No checks or cards will be accepted, only cold hard Lien."

They scrambled to clean the place up, with Coco shouting at them. "You heard the lady! We want this place cleaner than how we found it. Velvet, buff out that scratch and Yatsu for the love of all that is good and holy pop that dent out. I do not want to spend anything to pay for this, other than the lifts because I know I will be spending enough on those as is."

We were rapidly approaching the Beacon landing pads, so I seriously let up on the throttle. The Bullhead switched over to VTOL mode and we hovered to the pad. I let the landing gear out and gently placed the vehicle on the pad before powering the engines down. "We have arrived at our destination. Please watch your step and your weapons when you step out, and remember to keep flying Air Echo, your only student piloted air service." I opened the door and everyone hopped out.

The one employee down at the pad came in and took the co-pilot seat when Qrow got out. "We'll be putting this in the hanger, landing zone seventeen. Bossman Ozpin wanted to speak with you, so I'll be doing the flying." I nodded and switched seats with him. "By the way, name's Rouge. Pleasure meeting you Miss Arc."

I shook his hand. "Same here Rouge." I got comfortable in my seat and he fired up the engines, taking a quick check at the fuel reserves and a few other things before taking off. He messed with the radio for a second once we were in the air before pulling the stick to bring us back off the cliff.

Ozpin's voice came in over the radio. "Welcome back, Miss Arc. I trust that the mission was a stellar success?"

"Of course. I have info for you once we get this thing landed and I'm in your office for debriefing. By the by, can I keep this thing? I call it Air Echo!"

"Miss Arc…" He sounded exasperated.

"Oh, come on Ozpin, we liberated it fair and square. That, and now I have my license to fly, so not having a mighty vessel would be pointless for me now." I did the puppy dog eyes to help get the proper voice out. "Please?"

He sighed. "Fine, Miss Arc, you may keep it. But, you are to get it fully registered and manage upkeep on your own. Fuel and repairs will be given only if it is used in official business. Please make your way straight to my office once you have landed."

"Aye aye sir!" He cut out and I took the headset off, placing it on the convenient hook it had originally rested on. We came up to the hangar bay, a hole in the cliff face with various airships inside and Rouge very carefully maneuvered us to the seventeenth pad, before placing us down gently.

"Well, since you'll be keeping this beauty, we'll run some maintenance checks on it and get you the paperwork for registering it. And since this was a mission that you just went on, we'll also fuel it up for you. We're holding onto the keys until the paperwork goes through though, we don't want The Council to get up in arms about an unregistered airship flying around Vale all the time." He powered the ship down and motioned for the guys standing around to come over.

"Thanks Rouge. I'll be back down after I'm done talking to Headmaster Ozpin to come get the paperwork, so if you have it ready by then it would be awesome." We stepped out of the right door while the technicians went in the left door. "And if I could buy some Neon Blue and Neon Pink paint for painting her up in the next few days."

"I'll see what I can do, no promises though." A clang was heard from Air Echo and he turned around. "Now get. I have to make sure these idiots don't bang her up while trying to check up on her."

"You better!" I walked off to the elevator. "Later all!" I got a few replies before entering the elevator and pressing the top button. Soft elevator music played and I bounced back and forth on my heels to the balls of my feet. The elevator dinged and opened, letting me out into Ozpin's office where Team CFVY and Qrow were waiting along with Ozpin and Goodwitch.

"Good, now that the final member is here, we may begin the mission debriefing." He turned to Qrow. "How were they?"

"Could have done better." He took a swig from his flask, not bothering to put it back on his hip. "We ran into some White Fang in the tunnels and three were knocked out, two killed. The three that were knocked out were put up with some rope where Grimm would have a tough time getting to them. Echo and I were the ones to get the kills." A swig. "Once we got to the island, we ran into some Grimm that were easy enough to take out. After taking down a jamming tower we split up and ran into some security bot. Don't know what kind of resistence these four ran into. Finally got back together at our original place and were attacked by a mutated Deathstalker."

"Describe this mutated Deathstalker." Ozpin took a sip from his mug.

"Larger than most normal ones, more armor too. Had a glowing green stinger and could spit out acid. The one who sicked it on us called it a Plaguestalker. Said it was his first success with the serum. We killed it and Echo here found him, stole the Bullhead…"

I interjected. "Liberated the Bullhead. I didn't steal it."

"Right, liberated the Bullhead, and handed me the detonation switch when we got far away enough from the island to not be caught in the blast radius."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow. "Blast radius. Are you telling me that the entire island is gone now? That it was rigged to explode."

"Exactly that. And dang, that explosion was huge! I would have loved to get a picture of it." Qrow went to ruffle my hair but I slapped his hand away. "My account is nearly the same as Qrow's, but I have info I am to hand over to you." I handed him the drive that I had put everything on. "I highly suggest that you run that through a scanner first. There are no telling what kinds of _bugs_ are on it. Dude was all by himself on that island for a long time if his wardrobe was anything to go by."

"Thank you for that… lovely image, Miss Arc. Miss Adel, your report." Ozpin tucked the drive into a drawer.

"Yes sir. Once we split apart from Echo and Mister Branwen, we came across multiple security droids. They looked to be improved models of Atlesian Knights, with plasma based weapons. They were armed with both range and melee weapons. After destroying them all and taking out the jamming tower, we met back up with Echo and Mister Branwen and faced off against the Plaguestalker."

"Thank you. You may all head off to your dorms now, and you are dismissed from classes for the rest of the day." A message came up on his screen and he checked it. "Miss Arc, they have your papers ready in the hangar bay. If you wouldn't mind, could you serve as the transport for the field trip tomorrow?"

I grumbled but nodded nonetheless. "Sure, sir. I'll be heading down to Vale later then to pick up a few things."

He nodded. "I'll inform a pilot to be ready for transporting you then. You can head out directly from the hangar bay once you are done with your paperwork."

"Aye sir." We piled into the elevator, Team CFVY and I. I pressed the buttons for the main floor and the hangar bay. Coco decided to come with me to the hangar bay to take a ride down to Vale for some shopping in celebration of a mission accomplished. Once we had exited the elevator I was handed my license for flying. "Tell me, why do you guys even have the materials and machines for these down here?"

Rogue laughed and pointed over to a whiteboard. "We have classes for Huntsmen and Huntresses wishing to learn to pilot Bullheads and the likes. It's only available to third years and fourth years though, so imagine our surprise when Ozpin wanted a license for a first year." He laughed, giving me a slap on the back.

"It was either me flying, or Qrow Branwen." He grimaced at the thought. "Yeah, that was the consensus. So, lead me to the paperwork. Coco, you might as well find a comfortable seat while I fill this stuff out." She nodded and found a padded bench, pulling out her scroll to pass the time. I was led over to a table with the paperwork and a pen on it.

It was some basic stuff. License number of the person it is registered to, new flight number I got from Rouge, age of the craft, and so on and so forth. It took some time to get it all done and through the system, so by the time everything was said and done with forty minutes had passed and Coco was laying down on the bench, holding her scroll above her face while looking through clothes. "Here are your keys back. Before you head out using your Bullhead you are expected to clear it with the flight hands here in Beacon Hangar."

"Of course." I waved Coco over and she got up off the couch. "I was told that a ride would be ready to take me to Vale."

He checked the computer. "Yeah, it's over at pad three. Give me a minute and I'll be right over, I have to send the flight details to vale." We left him to do that as we went over to the vehicle to wait on him. True to his word, it only took a minute before he was with us. "Load on up you two."

After a few pre-flight checks, we were off. It took only a few minutes before he dropped us off, telling us that the normal flights to Beacon would be there to pick us up later. We thanked him and he flew off. Coco spent no time in heading to her stores as I made a mental checklist of the things I would go buy. " _Motion sickness pills, the paints, new seat covers, cleaning spray for the inside, some wipes. Maybe a bobblehead."_ My stomach growled and I made a decision to go get something to eat before going to but stuff.

I walked the streets towards a little café I knew of that made some delicious coffee and brunch sandwiches, grabbing a balcony seat for the view. I was turning heads, and I wondered why before I realized that I hadn't gone to put my stuff in my locker, so I was still carrying around all my equipment and was probably dirty. After finishing my meal and paying the bill, I headed to the closest pharmacy to pick up the pills for Jaune. I would not be cleaning up vomit in my brand-new Bullhead. I got a nice discount because I was a Huntress in training, they didn't even ask to see my licensce! My weapons do the talking well enough.

I feel like Ruby when I say that. _"I don't have to do any talking because my weapon does that for me! Isn't that right Crescent Rose darling? Yes, you beautiful piece of weaponry and engineering, you da best."_

0-0

Ruby sneezed right into the Dust mixture she was mixing with Blake, setting a small fire on the lab table.

"Why did you breathe in the Dust?!" Blake screamed while trying to grab the fire extinguisher.

"I don't know why!" Ruby was also trying to grab the fire extinguisher, so they ended up fighting for it while the fire spread. Soon the entire table was up in flames and people were running from the lab room, screaming for Goodwitch or a professor to fix the problem. "I forgot to wear the mask!"

0-0-0

So, as it turns out, they don't carry Neon Pink but they do carry Neon blue. So, instead of pink I decided to go with forest green lines instead. I also needed to buy the clear protective seal paint for outdoor vehicles. The paint was also fairly cheap, again because of the Huntress in training bit. I also made sure to buy masking tape, so I could just make lines by covering the first color with a pattern of tape and then tearing it off when the second color dried. I just asked them to send everything to Beacon's Hangar and paid them for the shipping as well and they said it would be there by the end of tomorrow. Good thing that tomorrow is Friday, I have the entire weekend to work on my Bullhead now.

I didn't really feel like going back to Beacon, so I just wander the streets of Vale waiting for something to catch my attention. A few kids come up to me to marvel at my weapons and their parents have to pull them back to stop them from climbing all over me. I just laugh and carry on, wishing them well. Some dude steals a lady's purse just down the block and starts booking it in my direction. He's looking back and shoving through the crowds, so he doesn't see me until it's too late.

I just headbutt him and he goes down like a sack of bricks. I do love the sound of a body crumpling to the ground like that. "Oh my gosh, thank you so much!" I picked up the purse and handed it to the lady, where she checked to make sure it had everything in it still and nothing had been taken out or fallen out in the chaos.

"No problem, have a good day Ma'am." I gave a polite bow and picked the unconscious purse snatcher up, tossing him against my shoulder. "I need to get him to a police station, so if you would all excuse me." The crowd parted and I walked on down the street. The closest station was a few blocks away, and the criminal woke up halfway there.

"Let me go kid, or I'm going to make you regret messing with me." He struggled against my hold on him and I gave him a rough shake, startling the civilians around us.

"Do you really have any room to talk? Make me regret it? And kid? Seriously, it's like you people think you can just act like you're threatening and scare people. You have to mean it and have the skills to back it up."

He kept on struggling. "Keep on telling yourself that when Roman comes after you!"

I held in a laugh. "Oh, and now you're bandying around Roman Torchwick's name in public. If he doesn't actually know you and you walk free after today, you know what he's going to do to you?" That got him to shut up really quick. "That's what I thought man. Just live up to what you did, it's much better than being dead in an alleyway somewhere."

I dropped him off with the police, and they thanked me for my service. I just nodded to them and went on my merry way. I should really come down to Vale more often, it's interesting. I swung by Otto's for some tools to fine tune Jolder and some etching tools for the gauntlets. I figured I could put dust into the knuckle pieces. Any further modifications and I'm going to have to name them. Hurt and Pain seem to be simple but apt names for knuckles. _"I bring the Hurt and the Pain!"_

I also swung by the mall to do some shopping for the team, deciding to get something nice since I hadn't been in classes for two days and they would ask where I had been. _"Divert attention with gifts. Works half the time."_ I got Pyrrha a nice necklace with an emerald drop stone, Nora got a large bottle of Red Sap Syrup, Ren got ear plugs (the heavy duty re-usable kind), and Jaune still got the pills. He would thank me in time, just as soon as he got over the perfect sister thing.

It was nearly dinner time when I got to the airship pad to get back to Beacon, and I was carrying a few bags in my left hand while I typed up a message to Pyrrha. 'Coming back right now. Was in Vale after the mission. Have gifts for you all.' I got on and sat on a seat, consolidating the gifts into one bag and putting all the other bags in with the gifts. When we landed I made a beeline for the mess hall, not even bothering to put my equipment away, I would need it tomorrow anyways.

I burst through the doors and put a grin on my face. "Guess who's back all!" When nobody said anything, I just shrugged. "It me." They all went back to eating and I got a tray with a burger on it with some fries along with a shake. I practically dropped the tray next to Ren's and plopped myself down in the seat. "What's up? Where's Jaune?"

Pyrrha simply pointed over to where Cardin and his buddies were sitting, and Jaune could be seen under Cardin's arm. He was obviously uncomfortable being there. "Jaune-Jaune has been with Cardin and the bad grapes all of yesterday and today. He only came back at, like, eleven last night to fall asleep. The he was gone before any of us woke up."

I took a bite of my burger and ate a few fries. "Well, he's going to be getting his present late then. His loss." I pulled out the bag and handed the three empty bags to Nora Pyrrha and Ren.

Nora ripped hers in half and slouched when she saw that nothing was in there. "Aww, you lied to us."

Ren looked into his and tipped it over when he couldn't see anything. "I do believe that we have been pranked, Nora."

Pyrrha's face adopted a small scowl. "That isn't very nice Echo. You got their hopes up for nothing."

"Ease up guys, I'm just Joshin' with ya. Here." I took out their actual presents and handed them over. "For Nora, a whole bottle of Red Sap Syrup. Do not use it all in one go, that stuff is expensive. For Ren, heavy duty ear plugs. And for Pyrrha, a necklace. Emerald, to bring out the eyes."

She gasped and took it, placing it around her neck. "How thoughtful."

Team RWBY was perplexed. "Hey, where are our gifts?" Blake was gazing longingly at Ren's new ear plugs, and Ruby was looking at Nora's syrup.

"You guys can buy stuff for yourself. I bought gifts for my team, because they are my second family. I will buy you birthday gifts though, so inform me when it is nearing your birthday and I will do so at that point." I saw Ruby going for the other bags I had and stopped her. "No, Ruby, that's not for you. That's for Hurt and Pain."

"Hurt and Pain?" She tilted her head inquisitively.

"My gloves, I'm going to etch some Dust channels into them. I'm going to have to go to the forge to beef them up though. If I try to put reserves in them right now, they're going to end up too weak to fight with for very long." I showed her the knuckles, where some metal was already starting to chip.

"Ooh oh, can I help you make them. I'm super good at making weapons, just look at Crescent Rose!" She was bouncing up and down in her seat.

"I guess so. I still need them to be lightweight enough for precision finger work. Tell ya what, meet me at the forge on Sunday after four and you can help."

She jumped up. "Yes! They're going to be awesome!" She sat back down when she realized that the people around us had stopped to stare at us. She retreated into her hood and her face was the color of her name.

The rest of us laughed and finished up our meals. I called first shower and Nora and Pyrrha gave it to me. It had been made an unsaid rule that the females of Team JNPER would get first showers, but I usually took mine at the end before Jaune and Ren did. I was like the dividing line in my eyes. I put all my stuff against the wall and stripped my dirty combat clothes off, tossing them into a hamper. They would be washed tomorrow evening, as I had multiples of the same clothing just in case I needed them.

My shower was short but extremely nice, the grime just flowed off of me with this new soap Pyrrha had gotten. She said that anyone could use it and that it was supposed to help sooth aching muscles and wipe dirt away like it was never there, and holy moly did it deliver. As soon as I had toweled off and gotten into new underwear I flopped down onto my futon. "Night guys." I was out like a light not moments after.

0-0

Nora looked to her now asleep teammate and poked her to make sure she was really asleep. When she didn't make any move to reprimand Nora, Nora nodded in satisfaction. "She's asleep." Nora went over to the bag that had held everything else and pulled whatever was left in it out. "Let's see. Parts and stuff. Tools. Motion sickness pills." With everything taken out, she tossed the bag away. "Boring!"

"Nora, you shouldn't go through other people's stuff. It isn't polite." Pyrrha was currently inspecting Echo's weapons, checking for damage. "She's going to have to clean her weapons. Wherever she went, they got dirt all over them."

Ren noticed a glint of metal under some straps that didn't look like a bullet. "Pyrrha, could you see what that is?" He didn't want to touch her stuff, but he was willing to put Pyrrha in the fire to sate his own curiosity on what the unknown object was.

She pulled at the object, and it came out. It was a key, but to what? From what they knew, Echo didn't own a vehicle. Did she buy a vehicle while out and about today and not tell them about it? "It's a key. It looks to be to a vehicle of some sort."

Nora snatched it from Pyrrha's hand and took a long hard look at it. "What if she got a key to a mech? Like the ones that are made in Atlas? How could she not tell us about this!? This is an outrage and I will not stand for this!" She went to wake up Echo but Ren held her back.

"Nora, she just came back from being out for nearly two days. I'm sure whatever she was out doing tired her out, and we need to respect that she needs her sleep right now. You can ask her about it tomorrow morning when we wake up." He sat Nora down on her bed.

"Okay Ren!" She was already in her sleep clothes, even though she hadn't been when Ren sat her down. Chalk it up to the ever-expanding list of mysteries regarding Nora Valkyrie. "Night-night!" Her head hit the pillow and a loud snore emanated from her mouth.

"Thank you, Echo, for the ear plugs." Ren put in his ear plugs and went about getting dressed in his sleep clothes while Pyrrha took a shower.

She was worried about Jaune, and so were Nora and Ren. They had noticed that he hadn't spoken to them all day or yesterday, and Pyrrha told herself that if tomorrow ended exactly like today then she would give him a stern talking to. Perhaps she would even humor Nora's idea of breaking Cardin's legs. She dried off and got into her sleepwear before turning off the lights and slipping into bed. "Good night Ren."

"Good night Pyrrha."

Silence descended on the room, except the occasional snore from Nora. It would not be broken until Jaune came in hours later, scrambling in the dark as quietly as possible while getting into his sleep clothes. He was surprised that his sister didn't wake up, but thought that it was best she didn't right now. He didn't want to have to listen to the questions she would undoubtedly ask him.

He didn't bother taking a shower or changing out of his clothes, instead kicking off his shoes and flinging himself onto his bed. He stared at the ceiling for an hour before he fell asleep, and he was plagued by dreams of Cardin and Grimm attacking him in a room of red. His sister watching from the sidelines with a scowl on her face. He was disappointing her, disappointing himself, disappointing his family, disappointing his team, the Arc bloodline. It was all there in her eyes for him to see.

0-0-0

When I woke up, Jaune was already gone. It seems that he got sneakier in the day I had been out. Either that or he just used the light from his scroll to navigate in the dark instead of blindly stumbling around. I got up and stretched my arms above my head, moving them from one side to the other to get my blood flowing to wake up faster. We had our first class with Port today, so I got into my uniform and grabbed my bookbag before heading off to the cafeteria. The others could wake themselves up in time now, so there was no need to worry about them.

I just grabbed a breakfast sandwich of sausage and egg on a biscuit and some coffee, before heading outside to eat in the garden. It was a nice morning in Vale, the sun wasn't too bright and there was a slight breeze. It was getting to the end of summer and heading into fall, which I found funny because of what we were going to be doing today. The forest of Forever Fall, the type of surroundings we would have in about a month.

The sandwich was nice, but the coffee could have been better. Whoever had made it today made it too acidic and not earthy enough for my tastes. There was a chef in the kitchens who made it just right, and the straight black nectar that flowed into my cup was nearly orgasmic. I can only wonder what Oobleck's coffee or Ozpin's coffee taste like if that is the best the students get. Must be like heaven on Remnant. I took the rest of the time before class to focus on my aura.

Since the full aura control classes didn't come until next semester, we were expected to do basic aura control exercises until then. Basically, it was just meditating and controlling the flow of your aura throughout your body. I was already well versed in basic control and medium control, it was how my semblance worked. But the fine control was still giving me some troubles. It was like trying to pull the toughest piece out in Operation, but the hole was the size of one half of the tweezers. I stopped when I got a message from Pyrrha saying that there were only five more minutes until class.

I picked up my coffee cup and carried it with me to Port's class. I would bring it back to the mess hall before we headed out for the mission. We didn't have Peach's class next period because of the field trip we were going to be going on. I got in the class with the last of the students filing in and sat down with my team. Except for Jaune, who was still sitting with Cardin and his team. I really hoped that he did end that today so that I didn't have to. It would give him more reason to dislike me, taking care of his problems.

"Now, as a good amount of you are going into Forever Fall today, I have a story of taking down a group of criminals!" He stopped. "Wait, that's not the purpose of this class."

Everyone seemed surprised. Professor Port, the man who would spout off tales of his heroism, had just stopped himself from telling a story of his heroism. For some people, it just didn't compute and their faces scrunched up as their minds shut down for a hard reset.

"Well, since I can't tell you about that, I'll just tell you all about the time that I accidentally broke a tree and was surrounded by hordes of Ursai due to their love of the sap!" This got a groan from everybody, even the ones that had been forced to reset their brains. This was just like Port now. "It was many years ago, so far that I don't remember exactly how long…" He spouted off his story, and I made it look like I was taking notes. I already knew enough about Ursai and Forever Fall for this lesson to be irrelevant. I was actually making plans on the upgrades for my gloves.

This made me think back to my first time I did this. All those years ago when I was in class drawing up plans for my swords. Ahh, the easy days. Well, not easy, but better than Beacon I guess. Never mind, when I say it like that it sounds like I'm dissing my team and friends. Just, different. Yeah, that sounds good. I wonder if I need to see a psychiatrist? Ozpin would probably say I did if he knew what was going on in my head, but that's all the more reason to be cryptic with him. He was always cryptic and shit with everyone else, why else would he speak in circles and wait for the person to draw an actual conclusion from what he was saying?

Class sped by as people fell left and right, to the boringness of Port's 'lecture' and I finished up my plans. The result ended up looking somewhat like Sun's own glove and gauntlet combo, with the Dust storage in the bracer along the forearm. Those would have to be extra dense for protection. I did not want Dust blowing up while on my arms. Which makes me think, what would happen if there was a misfire in Yang's shotgun gauntlets? Would the remainder of the ammunition also ignite, or were the safety measures placed so that only one rounds would be lost and minimal damage would be taken? Questions to ask her later, or maybe Ruby on Sunday.

"And that, class, is how I trapped and killed an Ursa Callus Rex!" The students who had fallen asleep were suddenly awake, seemingly alert to the end of the story. "Now, I have an assignment for you all. I want everyone to find someone from a different team to work with on this project, which is on how to take down a Grimm of your choosing in the most effective manner possible. Since we have an odd number of students, Miss Arc will be added to a pair to make it a group of three." The bell rang shrilly. "Now, this project will be due next week on Friday! Do not procrastinate! I never do!"

I packed my stuff up and slung the bag over my shoulder. "Port's giving out an actual assignment. What is the world coming to?"

That got a giggle out of Pyrrha. "While it is odd, I'm sure this is nothing to be worried about, Echo. He simply understood that there is more in learning to fight Grimm than simply listening to stories. Proper study must be done to ensure that the fastest and most efficient victory is achieved."

I just gave her a look for a few seconds. "Pyrrha."

"Yes?"

"You need to learn how to relax sometimes. Let loose. I mean, you're better than Weiss currently, but that's not saying much."

"Hey!" Weiss looked indignant that I basically said she had a pole up her bum twenty-four seven.

"I do know how to relax." She tried to convince me, and by proxy Nora and Ren. When we just gave her looks that said we didn't believe her, she looked down at her feet. "I do not know how to, as one would say, 'let my hair down' easily. Being a four-time champion and having the formal training I did makes it difficult."

I just nodded and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Understandable, but that's going to have to be worked on. This Saturday I want you to go to Vale and go to the Sleeping Dragon Spa. Have a you day. I'll send the address to your scroll."

"Why can you not just come with me?" A look crossed her face. "In fact, why don't we all do that tomorrow? It can be a bonding experience!" She clapped her hands together giddily.

I rubbed the back of my head. "I already had plans for tomorrow, sorry. They're probably going to take up the entire day."

Ruby was bobbing alongside Weiss, and looked over questioningly. "What do you have planned for tomorrow if you have Sunday planned for making your weapons?"

I shook my finger at her. "It's a secret. But, you will know it by later today. C'mon guy and gals, we have two hours and twenty minutes before we need to be at the landing pads for the trip to Forever Fall. What do we want to do in that time?"

"Read." Blake was already reading a book while walking next to Yang, barely looking up yet expertly dodging the oncoming traffic like an experienced walker reader.

"Study and work on the assignment given to us." Of course, Weiss would already want to start on that.

"Eat cookies and play games with Yang!" Ruby stopped dead in her tracks for a moment before moving again. "And I need to clean Crescent Rose as well. My baby will not be dirty for the first field trip that she's going on."

"Meh, I was thinking about getting in some weight lifting, but gaming with Rubes sounds good, I'll go with that."

I looked to Ren, but he didn't say anything. Nora spoke up. "Ren is going to make me pancakes so that I can use the syrup Echo got me yesterday! It will the ultimate test in pancake history!"

"I was most likely going to be checking over my equipment and then eat before we head out. My rifle's sights seem to be off. What do you plan on doing Echo?"

I shrugged. "I have no real clue, it's why I asked you all in the first place. I'll probably just work on lunch or something. We can't all just eat pancakes like Nora. And Ren, don't use all the flower when you make pancakes, I'm going to be making some parmesan crackers. For snacking purposes in the field." He simply nodded. "Well, that's everything planned out. We'll meet up in the common room kitchen for lunch in an hour and thirty minutes for lunch and then head to the pad after eating. Sound good to everyone?"

They all nodded and we went our separate ways. Ren, Nora and I went off to the kitchen and Ren claimed the left side of the stove, while I took up both right eyes. I got out the stuff for the crackers first and got to mixing that after pre-heating the oven while Ren took out a decent amount of flour for pancakes. It's a good thing I told him to not take all the flour, because he would have otherwise. I quickly kneaded the dough, working in small cuts of butter and the cheese along with some basil. I rolled out the dough and cut it into squares before spreading them out onto two baking sheets. The oven dinged and I put those in for twelve minutes.

Ren had already made a decent number of pancakes at this point and Nora was eagerly devouring them as they came. I got two pans out and turned the eyes on underneath them, to heat them up slightly. The first pan got beef slices along with a light drizzle of oil and salt and pepper. The other pan was filled with vegetables and some vegetable oil, salt, and pepper. They were set to a lower temp and I got to work on browning the beef. When it was halfway done, the crackers were ready to take out so I did that before going back to the stove.

The beef was looking good, but could use something more. I pulled out some soy sauce, or at least what went for soy sauce on Remnant, and added some to the pan along with some starch. The grease from the beef, the sauce, and the starch started to form a thick sauce so I had to dilute it some with water. The vegetables crisped up nicely, so I took them off the heat and the beef was done soon after. I plated up some vegetables and put some of the beef and sauce on top. Ren also got some while it was fresh and we ate in silence, with Nora spouting off how good his pancakes were.

I packed up the now cooled off crackers and wrote out everybody's names on the packages. They were grouped by partners though, so people would have to share. I would only hope Ren got the chance to at least try some before Nora ate the entire bag's worth. Everybody else came down while those of us already in the commons room were lounging on the couches. We had grown bored of waiting for everyone else and were playing Go Fish. Nora was freakishly good at this game, it was like luck was always on her side in games.

When lunch had been re-heated and eaten, everybody got into their combat outfits and geared up. I made a mental note to clean everything on Sunday while I was in the forge with Ruby. Jolder was sporting a few smudges from some sort of green fluid. It smelled rank though, so that would definitely be cleaned. I made sure to grab my key, as I would be needing it. When Nora asked me what it was for, I just told her it was part of the secret that everyone would be learning about.

The teams on going on the trip were waiting at the pad when we had arrived. Team CRDL and Jaune, Deku's team, and some other team I didn't know the name of along with Goodwitch. "Miss Arc, why are you here and not where you should be?"

I held up my finger and opened my mouth like I was going to say something before realizing that I had messed up. I put my finger down and closed my mouth before replying. "You are absolutely right, Miss Goodwitch. I will be right back." I dashed off to avoid her ire and headed for the hangar bay. I toyed with the pills in my pocket while I waited for the elevator to reach the destination. When the doors opened I dashed out. "Hey, Rouge, do you have a bottle of water?"

"Yeah, why do you need one?"

"Motion sickness pills for the students. Well, just one really. He doesn't do well on airships." He just nodded and tossed me one. "Thanks. We're heading off to Forever Fall in just a few minutes. The flight details should already be in the system from the Headmaster, since he's the one who asked me to do this."

He checked and gave a thumb up. "You're clear for the operation. She's all fueled up and ready to go. Also, we filled up the ammo reserves. They were only at a quarter full when you brought her in."

"Okay, thanks for that!" I hopped in and took of my headphones, slipping on the headset. Putting the key in and turning on the Bullhead, I did the pre-flight check and closed the doors. "Vale air control, this is Echo Arc, Huntress license six-one-nine-four-A and flight license six-one-nine-five-two. Am I clear for operation?"

"Copy, Echo Arc. You are clear." I powered up the engines fully and waited for Rouge to signal all clear for takeoff. When he did that, I eased out of the landing position and out into the open air. The short trip came to an end and I opened the doors up after landing and turning the engines down.

"Would every student please board and make yourselves comfortable. It will be a short ride to Forever Fall, but it is a tight fit." Goodwitch oversaw the students entering before she entered herself.

Pyrrha spoke up. "Miss Goodwitch, we still have to wait on Echo. She hasn't returned yet."

"That! Is where you're wrong Pyrrha!" I pushed back from the controls and poked my head out into the bay area. "Good afternoon everyone, and welcome to Air Echo. Please refrain from damaging or dirtying her, as any and all repair and or cleaning cost will be billed directly to your leader. Jaune, here are some motion sickness pills and water. Take them now." I tossed them over to him and he quickly did so. "Please, make yourselves comfortable on this trip. There will be no inflight snacks or drinks, and there never will be. No music will be played over speakers, but you are welcome to listen to your own music at soft levels." I returned to my seat and closed the doors. "Now, without further ado, let us be off!"

I fired the engines up again and took off, quickly pointing myself in the direction of Forever Fall and gaining elevation. There was a slight change in trajectory for a moment when I had to move because an incoming flight, but it was just an elevation change that I quickly corrected. Airships in Remnant were better and worse than air vehicles on Earth. Sure, they had cheaper fuel, but that fuel worked less and less at higher elevations. The tradeoffs were real.

Cardin and his team were complaining that I had a Bullhead. Or, at least, that I was the one flying. I thought about tilting the ride just to spite them, but decided against it. Goodwitch could have my license revoked and I didn't want to do that to the other passengers. I would tell them on the way back that I reserved the right to kick out unruly passengers and have them hoof it all the way back to Beacon.

Soon, the tops of the trees transitioned to vibrant reds and oranges from the blanket of green that had been below us. I spotted a clear zone, perfect for landing. I eased up on the throttle and circled around the spot. "Alright everyone. Please watch your hands and feet while getting off the ride. Any and all belongings left on will be claimed upon return to Beacon if they have not already found their way to the hands of the rightful owner. What I'm saying is, don't leave your stuff for me. I will take it."

I set us down and opened the doors, shutting down everything before taking off the headset and putting my headphones back on. I made to follow the group but Goodwitch stopped me. "I'm going to have to ask you to stay here with the Bullhead, to protect it from Grimm. It is our only way back to Beacon and I would hate to lose it." I rolled my eyes but stayed back, taking a seat at one of the open doors. "Thank you. Everyone, let us get moving. We have just a few hours to get everything done and get back here. I will be patrolling around the border for incoming Grimm, so if you are in trouble come find me immediately. We will reconvene here in four hours."

The teams went their separate ways and Goodwitch went straight down one of the paths. I laid back and let out a burst of air from my mouth. "Maybe I should store a mattress in here for when I'm told to stay back. Also, a pillow and some blankets. There's definitely enough room in the storage compartments." There was a crackling sound from the northern edge of the clearing and I looked up to see nothing there. "That's odd…" Taking Jolder off my back and shifting it into its rifle form, I aimed it at the spot where I had heard the noise.

The creaking of a branch to the left of the spot made me whip in that direction. I just caught a glimpse of a slim black leg before whatever it was went out of sight and into the foliage. I slowly put Jolder back and took out Sol and Luna. More sounds of movement surrounded me, this time all around. I hopped out of the Bullhead and glanced around. Slowly, coming out of the cover of the trees and the bushes, were Arachne. Arachne were spider-like Grimm, came in swarms of up to two hundred, but it was most probable that this group was small as they hadn't been attacked by the groups in the forest or by Goodwitch.

Some were regular Arachne, but others were Leapers, indicated by longer back legs, orange stripes along the abdomen, and larger mandibles. They liked to wait for Huntsmen and Huntresses to be distracted by their brethren before they went in for the kill, jumping onto the back of their prey and biting into the neck. Their venom was extremely toxic, and it caused paralysis on contact even with aura. The first wave came in and I swiped with Sol, creating a line of fire along the forest floor. "Burn, baby burn!"

0-0

Glynda was surprised at how few Grimm she encountered while on patrol. Normally, she would have found many more Grimm than what she had found. There was even reported increase in Grimm activity in this part of Forever Fall. But again, all she had found were some Beowolves and Ursai and none of them were Majors. She just hoped that none of the students encountered tough Grimm. Her thoughts drifted off to Echo, Beacon's newest 'secret club' member.

She was a strange girl, and that was saying something. Most Hunters and Huntresses were strange in their own ways, but it was like she took the meaning and kept on going with it. She was difficult to get a read on, even Ozpin admitted to this. It was like her mind was in three places at once, constantly going through plans and recreating them. What they all knew, though, was that she was hiding something extreme. Qrow had said that she killed the White Fang grunt like a Hunter would, efficiently. That could mean that she either felt nothing about it, or she had already grown used to it. Both came with their own conundrums.

She was brought out of her musings when one of the students from Team CRDL came rushing up to her. He was stammering and breathing heavily, trying to convey a message to her. "Breathe and tell me what is going on, Mister Thrush."

He took a second to take a deep breath and spoke. "Cardin was attacked by Ursa Majors. Arc is there with him. Told me to run and get you."

Glynda stiffened up for half a second before dashing off in the direction that Thrush had come from. Of course, Mister Arc and Mister Winchester would be the ones to be in the thick of this. Ursa Majors, of all things to encounter while collecting the sap! They had been warned of the threat of Ursai coming for the sap if they smelled it, which is why they were to seal the tapped holes and seal the jars as soon as they had finished filling them.

She was met again by Miss Xiao Long and Miss Belladonna. They told her the same story Mister Thrush had told her not moments ago. The time they spent telling her the story gave Mister Thrush enough time to catch up, though he was even more out of breath than before and was extremely red in the face. "If you two would escort Mister Thrush back to the Bullhead where he can rest while I go to aid Mister Arc and Mister Winchester." They nodded and helped the poor boy to the Bullhead.

She went off again, hoping there would be no further interruptions, but there were. Mister Winchester's other two teammates came up, bruised and battered but otherwise no worse for wear. She told them to get back to the Bullhead and rest with their teammate. They did so and she was just about where the students had said the Ursai were when Miss Nikos, Miss Rose, and Miss Schnee came walking out of the small clearing. They looked fine and were moving slowly with no urgency.

"I take it that the issue of the Ursai has been resolved?" Glynda put her riding crop into its holster.

"Yes, Miss Goodwitch. The Grimm in the area have been taken care of. Jaune even took the head of an Ursa Major with one clean strike." The grin on Miss Niko's face spoke volumes of how proud she was of her partner. Miss Rose simply nodded energetically while Miss Schnee simply gave a terse nod. "We were just about to head back to the Bullhead to drop off the samples that we collected, Jaune and Cardin should be joining us shortly."

"Good, I will check in with the other teams to make sure that they haven't run into any major problems. Be safe and vigilant students." Glynda walked off in the direction that her scroll told her Mister Deku's team had gone in. The foliage became thicker and the trees became denser, so she had to avoid tripping over packed roots in the darker portions where light was scarce. She nearly ran into a web spun between two trees and she knocked it down, only to balk at how many she saw behind it.

Arachne, while manageable in small groups, were deadly in large swarms. The amount of webbing put up in this area indicated that they had been making this a nest, as Spinners made webs in no time at all that were necessary for the forming of a nest. And her students were near this nest. She pulled out a vial of fire Dust and went about burning the nest apart, killing any Arachne in her way. When she made it to the center, she found her students bundled into cocoons of Arachne silk but she couldn't see the Queen.

She cut the cocoons apart and saw that two of the students had been bitten and the other two were simply unconscious. She woke the ones that were unconscious with smelling salts and told them to rush their teammates to the Bullhead while she guarded the rear. No Arachne followed after them, and she pulled out her scroll to inform everyone to double time it back to the Bullhead. She then called Echo.

"Miss Arc, power up the Bullhead's engines now! We have two wounded in need of immediate medical aid. Inform Beacon infirmary that we have need of Arachne antivenom."

"Already done. Adding two more to the list. The Bullhead's already powered up and waiting on you. Godspeed." With that, Echo hung up and Glynda focused on keeping any approaching Grimm away from her students.

0-0-0

I was putting pads down for the bitten students so that their hearts would be above the necks, to slow down the flow of the venom. I had to make them close together to fit everyone in though, as it was already a tight fit before. It wasn't really a surprise that this had happened really. As the swarm of Arachne came in, I saw a few that had scratches on their carapaces and there were Spinners with them. Then the Queen had come. Queen Arachne actually look like they have human female torsos coming out of the abdomen instead of a cephalothorax, or the head of a spider. They are also very large, difficult to miss in a forest during the day. They usually only moved at night or in caves, their preferred environment being dark and damp.

She was obviously angry that I had been killing her minions and came at me with the swarm. I cut her down quickly and burned the last of the swarm with the fire Dust in Jolder, as the Dust in Sol had run out. This left me in a burnt clearing when students started to come in, beginning with Yang, Blake, and Russel. Then the unnamed team with two bitten teammates, which is when I called in for the infirmary. I told the team to put their injured teammates down with their necks below their heart and waited on Goodwitch to arrive.

Everyone piled in and I made some quick comments. "Everyone, please ensure that all belongings and samples are secure, we are going to be going extremely fast." I pushed the throttle as far as it could go when we cleared the tree line. "Hi ho Silver, away!"

0-0-0-0

 **A.N.- Hey all, I think that I'm going to try for an update schedule of Sundays as it offers me the most time after the week and possible class work I will be doing in the future. Just wanted to inform you of this, and I hope that you all have a wonderful day/night/evening/morning/whenever you are reading this. Till next time!**


	11. Chapter 10- Daddy!

**Reviewer Acknowledgements**

 **Guest 4- Thank you! The feedback is greatly appreciated.**

 **Johnjohn1970- Thank you, and yes Echo is going to be shipped with Penny due to a request.**

 **W- I do not want to write in Echo having feelings for Jaune. As stated earlier in the story, she sees him as only her brother, and I intend to keep it that way. (But yes, I am evil in the part where I like to kill off characters for plot reasons and because I suck at writing completely new characters.)**

 **C0de- Thanks, I like the flare idea and the possibility of failure to get on the 5p team.** & **Funny, I would think we already had the SCP. It's like a moving Bermuda Triangle.**

0-0-0-0

By the time we arrived at Beacon, there were already four stretchers waiting and plenty of medical personnel. I turned the Bullhead so the doors were facing them and touched down while opening the doors. The four injured students were immediately pulled from the ride and rushed off to the ICU of the infirmary. Sadly, they also left behind small splotches of blood and venom on the floor.

"Alright everyone, please bring your sap samples to Professor Peach right away. After that you are excused from further classes. You are dismissed." Goodwitch walked off after the injured students and everyone else went off to Professor Peach's room.

I huffed. "Thanks everyone, for helping me clean my ship."

I stood on the other side. "Oh, you're welcome. Anything to help the person who just took out a huge fucking swarm of Arachne and their queen. You're just so awesome and I hope to be like you one day."

Back to the other side. "Oh, you surely will one day. But I will have gotten even further in my training! I will not stagnate!"

Back again. "Well gosh darn it! Our fierce battle for supremacy may never come then. Oh well, see you later."

The click of metal against stone met my ears and a sip was heard. "Most times when we find a student talking to themselves, it isn't like this Miss Arc. Are you not going to bring your Bullhead to the Hangar Bay?"

I rolled my eyes and looked over at Ozpin. "Yes, I was just about to do that. I was just saying how at least some of them could have helped me clean this mess up." I pointed to the spots of blood and venom starting to dry, becoming a slight crust on the floor.

"Are you not worried about your fellow classmates? Arachne venom can be extremely lethal." He tapped his cane twice and there was a fizzling sound behind me. I turned around and saw that the blood and venom that had been there disappeared.

I shook my head and looked back to him. "No, I am not worried about them. Beacon infirmary will take care of them and they weren't bitten by the most venomous Arachne sub-species, so there's no chance of them dying unless they were allergic to the venom."

A brow raised and he took a sip of his mug. "And how do you know that they weren't bitten by Arachne Caustics?"

I cracked my neck and stretched my arms above my head, hearing and feeling a nice pop in my elbows. "As I said while talking to myself, I took out most of the swarm and the queen. I can only assume that Professor Goodwitch took out the rest on her way to Deku's team and to the Bullhead. That, and Caustics only nest up in mountain caves where they can create pools of venom to spawn their children, supposedly. They don't want rain water or loose dirt to get into their spawning pools."

He nodded. "You are absolutely correct. I am surprised that you know about them this much, Port hasn't been teaching the first years about Arachne. He only now got to telling the second years about them in detail. You take your studies very seriously I see."

I nodded and leaned against the Bullhead. "Yes, I take my studies seriously. I also read very much ahead of where we are in class, to be prepared. It never hurts to be prepared. Question."

"Answer." This stupid smirk came and went from his lips as he took a sip of coffee to hide it.

"Alright then, smart ass. Do I get extra credit for taking out the queen? Sure, she was super easy, but I also had to deal with her little minions. I need to fill up on Dust and clean all my shit, so that should constitute me getting more points in Port's class, right?" I looked at him hopefully.

He just stood there impassively. Seconds later he spoke again. "I'll see what I can do. I will talk to Peter later today. Have a good day." He walked off, seemingly in a random direction with no destination in mind. I hopped back into Air Echo and looked back to where he was, or actually had been at this point. He just disappeared.

"Cryptic bullshit Ozpin. Cryptic bullshit." I kicked the engines back on and brought her around to the hangar, landing her back on my pad. When I exited, I was met by Rouge.

"Nice going out there. I heard that you flew a rescue mission for some Arachne victims." He patted my shoulder. "We got some stuff in for you earlier while you were out. Paint and stuff, said it's already paid for."

I rolled my neck out. "Yeah, while I was in Vale yesterday I went and bought it all. The cleaning stuff will go permanently in the ship for messes. I'm coming back in tomorrow to do the painting. But right now, I think I'm heading to the forge. I have to do some weapon upkeep."

He took a look at my weapons and saw how dirty they were. "I hear ya there. See ya tomorrow then." He waved me off as I entered the elevator and closed the door.

They really need to get another tune for this thing. Every time I get in it I only hear the same song. The doors opened and I went off to the forge. As I opened the doors, I was almost run over by a red blur coming in from behind. "Oh my gosh I am so sorry. I was just coming in for… Echo! What are you doing here today? I thought that we were coming in here Sunday?"

"Yes, Ruby, we still are. I just had to do some upkeep on my weapons. Cleaning and sharpening, refilling on Dust. Arachne are pains in the butt." She followed me in to a bench and I got started in sharpening Jolder. "So, what did you come in here for? And what's the rush?"

She perked up when she remembered what she was in here for. "Oh yeah! I came in to fix a few of Crescent Rose's pistons. They got sap in them from the trees."

"And why couldn't you do that in your room? I am ninety nine percent sure that you can do that without being here in the forge."

Ruby pouted. "Because Weiss doesn't want anything in the room to get sap on it. She doesn't believe me when I say I can clean my baby without getting a mess anywhere. I can clean her perfectly without any messes, 'cause I'm a big girl!" She puffed out her chest. "I drink milk!"

I chuckled and ruffled her hair. "That you do, Rubes. You should probably get to working on that so Weiss doesn't berate you for staying here too long."

"You're right! Thanks Echo!" She bolted off to an empty bench and got to work on cleaning her snyther rifle. She worked with extreme precision, cleaning out pistons and then bringing them back up to pressure in seconds.

I finished with Jolder and brought over a fire Dust crystal. They lasted much longer than powdered Dust, but were much more expensive. Thankfully, I had already made the sockets for two crystals in Jolder and we got extreme student discounts for anything we used in the forge. We just pay for what we use before we leave, and everything's good. Sadly, Sol and Luna weren't big enough for crystal use, so I had to fill them back up with powdered Dust. They were faster to sharpen than Jolder was, and I was soon ready to leave. Ruby joined me on the way out and we paid for the materials we used.

On our way back to the dorms, she kept looking back up to me every once and awhile. She probably thought she was being sneaky with her glances, but I saw her every time in my peripherals. She wasn't that much shorter than me, so it was like she thought I was her sister's height. "What is it, Ruby?"

She jumped when she realized that I caught onto her. "Well, um, I was just wanting to ask…"

I rolled my hand, as if telling her to go ahead. "Yes?"

"CanyoutellmemoreaboutJaune?!" She spouted out before she hid her face with her hood. She was barely distinguishable from her hood with how red her face was.

I stopped, and she stuttered to a stop just slightly behind me. "Pardon?"

"Could you, maybe, tell me more about Jaune…?" She was fidgeting with the hood of her cloak and twiddling her thumbs together while looking at the ground.

"Ruby, do you possibly like Jaune? As in, more than a friend kind of like?" She just nodded, probably not trusting herself to speak. I sighed internally. She was actually another person that I wouldn't mind being with Jaune, besides Pyrrha. She was quirky and socially awkward and she just clicked with him. It was no surprised that she considered him her first friend in Beacon, and me her second despite me meeting her first. "You have some tough competition then, Strawberry."

She looked at me. "What do you mean?"

I motioned for her to follow me, and we walked to the gardens. We sat down on a bench out of the way, in a section that people didn't normally walk through. "I'm just going to lay it on you. He is as dense as a Goliath's skull, maybe thicker. That, and Pyrrha is also holding her own flame for my brother." I looked her in her silver eyes. "Do you think you're willing to go up against these odds?"

She looked aghast at the information before looking down to her feet and muttering to herself. When she finished, she looked up to me with a spark in her eyes. "Yeah! I'm totally going to win, Pyrrha doesn't even drink milk like I do! She won't even know what hit her!" She stood up and made to leave before remembering why she asked me to tell her about him in the first place. "So, what kinds of things does he like? I have to have an edge against Pyrrha."

I leaned back and gave it a long hard thought. "Well, he likes it when girls find his 'charms' charming, laugh at his jokes, don't treat him like he's a kicked puppy. He likes acoustic guitar, I'm pretty sure he brought that to Beacon from Ansel. So, he wants to serenade someone I guess, who it is only time will tell. I told him to stop making advances on Weiss, because that road only leads to disaster for him. He likes Pumpkin Pete, not the cereal as much now, but the mascot. His hoodie is actually one that he had to send in fifty box tops for, it has Pumpkin Pete's head on the chest. He probably loves that jacket as much as he loves Crocea Mors. He loves tales of knights and princesses, he used to say that he wanted to be a knight and protect all of his sisters. I also have it on pretty good authority that he's going to be taking training from Pyrrha soon, so you could possibly get in on that to even out the playing field."

Her eyes spun at the onslaught of information and she just held her finger up to tell me to stop. "So, let me get this straight. Pumpkin Pete, knights and princesses, train with him, treat him like he's a person, like him for him?"

"Summarily, yes. He also likes to dance. You should probably learn how to move and fight in heels, you could probably ask Weiss to help with that. And with that out of the way, you need to have a talk with your sister. If she threatens Jaune at all, she will be missing more than half of her hair when I'm done with her, and she will be doing nothing to stop me. If Jaune hurts you, I will hurt him myself and do not need your sister to kill him. He would probably beat himself up if he hurts anyone, but my part would be only to further instate on how he messed up." I realized I was rambling and stopped myself. "Do I make myself clear? Speak to Yang and make it know that you like Jaune maybe more than friends and that she will answer to me if she even looks at him like she will drag him away."

She bobbed her head up and down. "Yes, crystal clear! Thank you Echo, you're the best!" She gave me a quick hug and dashed off to the dorms.

"Ruby!" She stopped and looked back to me. "Jaune and Pyrrha are on the dorm's roof right now. If you get there in time, you may be able to slide in easily to the sparring lessons." She just nodded again and was off. I draped myself across the bench and closed my eyes. Looks like I have an update for Ozpin on the shipping. Many more orders of fluff were to be expected, maybe some thorns of envy holding the ships back.

I stayed there for a few hours just relaxing. When I heard the sound of shoes hitting the stones, I took a glance at my scroll. It was almost dinner time. I looked up and saw that it was Cardin making his way to me. I groaned inwardly and got up, brushing my clothes off. He stopped in front of me, looking awkward and playing with his hands behind his back. He had switched to a hoodie and some sweat pants with sneakers. When he didn't say anything for a minute, I made to move past him, but a quiet 'wait' stopped me. "What is it, Winchester? Come to bother me?"

He sighed and sat down on the bench that I previously occupied. "I'm sorry." I stood there, visibly stunned. Here was Cardin Winchester, the biggest bully in our year, apologizing to me. "Could you sit down, I don't really like speaking to people standing over me. I sat down, still quiet. "Thanks." He looked up to the sky. "I just wanted to say sorry again, for everything I did. Jaune really saved my ass earlier today, if you didn't already hear. I was probably going to be killed by that Ursa if he didn't step in to protect me. Really got me thinking about why I wanted to be a hunter, you know? At first, it was a family thing. Keeping the Winchester family strong and in business. My dad and mom really wanted me to beat the Faunus in everything, and they drilled that into me. I guess I just… lost myself over time. Then, I just wanted to be stronger and more powerful than anyone around me when my sister was attacked by White Fang during a rally. She… didn't make it."

I was reeling. Cardin had a reason to hate the Faunus just like Weiss. He was indoctrinated into it by his family, and he had lost a loved one to the White Fang. "Wait, how long ago was this? How old was your sister?"

He swallowed heavily and pulled out his wallet. He handed me a picture and pointed to this small brown headed child. "That's her. She was four, and it was four years ago here in Vale. She didn't even make it to the hospital in time." He looked like he was about to start crying, his shoulders shaking heavily and moisture gathering at the corners of his eyes.

"Was it at Plunket Mall? Right before the holidays?" I was asking because that was the only rally that I knew of during that time.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" He looked at me and swallowed heavily again.

"I was there that day." A shocked look flittered across his face before a look of rage came over it. "And no, I wasn't there to participate in the rally. I was there to buy some presents for my family back in Ansel. I helped the security and police deescalate the situation by taking in the members of the White Fang that were there. There weren't any other Huntsman or Huntresses nearby when everything went down, so I figured why not?" I slumped my shoulders. "Well, you can't save everyone. I knew that already, but it really hit me that day. I'm sorry I couldn't save your sister Cardin."

He looked back up to the sky and shuddered, taking in a deep breath. "You must have been, what, twelve at the time?" He let out a few breathy chuckles, holding back his sobs. "My mom was devastated; my dad drank even more. But they both talked about this kid that saved them. I never really made the connection, they said it was a girl and she wore these cat headphone things." He got up and kneeled in front of me. "Thank you, for trying your best and saving my parents at least. They're all I have left really."

"No." I stood up and put a hand on his shoulder. "You also have your team now. They're just as much as your family now as your blood relatives. This must have taken a lot of effort for you Cardin." He looked up at the use of his first name. I was smiling now. "What say you to burying the hatchet and working together from now on? You're going to have to work on your teammates, tell them to stop the racism, and then foster the bonds that grow between you and them. It'll be hard, harder than coming to me and apologizing to me. But, it will be so worth it when you are all stronger for it." I held my arm out for him to help him up and he grasped it at the forearm.

"That sounds great, Echo. See you in class on Monday." With that he walked off, looking at the picture of his sister again before putting it in his pocket and whistling a tune. He looked happy now, like a weight was lifted off his shoulders.

I waited at the bench for a few minutes before heading off to the mess hall for dinner. I didn't really feel like making anything today, after all. I ate my dinner at the usual table, and Team CFVY met me when I was halfway done. We exchanged pleasant conversation for the rest of the meal and I bid them good night before heading off to the dorms. I made a quick detour to put my equipment in my locker first though. I didn't want to bring it to the room again and take up space. I pocketed my key and walked to the room with a light spring in my step, ready to start tomorrow.

When I swiped my scroll across the door and entered, I was greeted by everyone sitting on their beds and staring at me. "Well, this isn't creepy at all anyone. Anybody think this would be a good scene for a horror movie?"

Jaune groaned. "Humor won't help in this situation sis. Sit down. Pyrrha wanted us all to be here for the big announcement."

I took a seat on the futon and kicked off my boots, moving the blanket out of the way before my clothes brushed up against it and got it dirty. "So, bro, what's up? You going to tell us that you secretly have the hots for Yang and have had scandalous dreams about her?"

He blushed and stammered. "N-no! Not anything like that!" He took a second to calm himself down and continued. "I just wanted to tell everyone that… I didn't get into Beacon the right way."

Nora tilted her head. "What do you mean by that Jaune-Jaune? Did you ninja your way in and secretly hack into the computers, putting really good credentials into the system?"

He winced and rubbed the back of his head nervously. "That isn't too far off, actually. You all know how Cardin and his team have been controlling me for the fast few days?" We just nodded and he continued. "Well, he found out that I lied my way into Beacon and held that over my head. I had forged transcripts that got me into Beacon." He looked over to Ren and Nora. "Do you guys hate me for lying to you all for this long? Do you think I don't belong here?"

Nora just laughed. "Hah! Our fearless leader thinks he doesn't belong here!" She launched herself at Jaune and wrapped him in a tight hug. "Of course you belong here, Jaune! If you weren't here, then we wouldn't be Team JNPER! Nothing would be right, and that would make me sad! And it would make Ren sad too, though he wouldn't really show it. But I know that he would be crying on the inside to know that you were gone!" She let go of Jaune and he took in a deep breath of air, going from blue to red, then back to a reddish white.

He looked to Ren and Ren just got up and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Jaune, you belong here. We wouldn't have it any other way." He went back to his bed and sat down.

"See Jaune, I told you that they wouldn't be mad with you." Pyrrha got up and sat beside him, rubbing a hand in circular motions on his upper back. It appeared to calm him down slightly. "You just have to put trust in your team at times like these, and they will have your back all the way." She looked to the three of us. "I have convinced Jaune to let me train him, and Ruby has as well. Would any of you like to help?"

Ren simply nodded and Nora got a gleam in her eye. "We will be the best training buddies ever Jaune! Sure, your muscles will scream at you to kill them after I'm done, but that only means that it's working!" She stage whispered to him. "Don't try any of Ren's health drinks. They're **really** bad."

I shook my head. "While I would love to help him, I can't really do much more than what he's already getting with you all. Ren's aura training, Nora's exercises for muscle building, sparring with Ruby and Pyrrha for training in speed and style. Ren knows more than me about aura control, Nora knows about exercise more, Ruby is faster than me without a full charge of my semblance and I don't fight sword and board like Jaune does so Pyrrha is the closest to him."

"You could help him with tactics." Pyrrha spoke up, looking over at Jaune. "You both could work together on making the team better together overall with stronger cooperation moves."

I smiled at her and Jaune. "That I could. But it all depends on whether Jaune wants my help. I'm not just going to push myself into helping him if he doesn't want it."

He just looked at everyone before looking back to Pyrrha again. She gave him a slight nod, and he did a few cycled breaths. "Echo, would you help me with team tactics. You're really good and I'm surprised that Ozpin didn't make you team leader instead of me, 'cause that would have been the smarter choice and…"

I cut him off by walking up to him and covering his lips with a finger. "Jaune, I would love to help you with tactics. But, as a stipulation, you have to work on your confidence. And I mean real confidence, not the fake bravado you put on to impress the ladies. You're a great brother and a great leader. Ozpin would not have let you into Beacon if he didn't see the potential you have."

His eyes widened and he started to cough after he accidentally breathed in some spit. "Wait, OZPIN KNOWS ABOUT THE FAKE TRANSCRIPTS?!"

I reeled back and rubbed at my ears. "Yeah. Jaune, he has been headmaster for a long time. Even Goodwitch knows, along with the rest of the professors. I confronted him about it on the first night we were in the dorms and I couldn't fall back to sleep. He knows that you are a leader Jaune, he let you in knowing that you could make it. And look at you now! You're the leader of your own team, and you're friends with the second strongest team in the first years!" I put my hands on his shoulders and looked him deep in the eyes. "Jaune Miles Arc, believe in your own abilities and your teammates."

He stared back for a long time before clapping a hand to my arm. "I will. And I'll believe in my sister as well, because while she's just a student like the rest of us she seems to always know what to do." He smiled and brought me in for a hug. "Thanks, sis, for telling me. And for helping me even though you don't have to."

"Team Hug!" Nora yelled before she jumped the two of us, knocking us back onto Jaune's bed. Ren shook his head but joined in anyways. Pyrrha looked slightly uncomfortable sitting slightly off to the side before Nora dragged her into the hug, smushing her against Jaune and I. "I love you guys."

"We love you to Nora, but I think you should let us go. Jaune's turning blue." She let go and Jaune took a deep breath after seeing death's door for the second time that night. "We should go to sleep, or at least I know I will. I'm going to be in the hangar all day tomorrow working on Air Echo, so if you need me you know where to find me." I went into the bathroom while carrying a new pair of underwear and some sleep shorts, coming out after changing into them and throwing the dirty clothes into the hamper. "Good night guys."

"Night." They all said before they did their stuff to get ready for bed. I clsoed my eyes and shut the noise out, falling asleep rather quickly.

0-0

While Jaune was getting out of his clothes to put on his sleep clothes, a Dust crystal fell out of the pocket of his hoodie. Reaching down and picking it up off the floor, he examined it in front of his face. "Where did this come from?"

There was a knock on the bathroom door. "Did you say something Jaune?" Pyrrha was waiting on him to get out so she could take a shower and get ready to sleep.

Jaune quickly stripped himself of his normal clothes and hopped into his sleep clothes before opening the door and showing the crystal to Pyrrha. "Yeah, I did. When I was taking off my hoodie this fell out of the pocket. I don't remember putting it there or even picking it up. Do you know what kind of Dust it is?"

Pyrrha took the crystal out of his hand and rotated it, trying to identify it with the knowledge she had. "No, I have no idea what kind of Dust this is. Perhaps on Monday when we go into Professor Peach's room you can leave it on her desk to analyze. It might earn you extra credit." She handed it back to him.

A grin formed on his face. "Yeah, that sounds awesome!" He put it in the top drawer of the nightstand next to his bed, and Nora was eyeing it suspiciously.

"Nora." Her attention turned to Ren, who was sitting on his bed with his legs crossed, doing his nightly meditation before bed. "Don't even think about it."

"Aww." She sighed dejectedly but listened to Ren. Her final thoughts before going to sleep were, " _I will find out what that Dust does if it's the last thing I'll ever do._ "

Since Pyrrha was the last out of the bathroom and the last to get into bed, it was her turn to turn off the light. She did so and moved slowly into her bed. She was happy today. Her leader came clean to their team and wanted their help in growing stronger. She swore to herself to thank Headmaster Ozpin later for letting Jaune be their leader. She thought about Jaune a little longer, about how she would help train him in sparring, teach him in studies, maybe go on a date with him like a normal girl…

She drifted off to sleep like the rest of the team, unaware of the dark force roiling in the Grimm lands.

0-0

Salem was angry. It was understandable, as one of her pieces had just been reported as eliminated. She had made sure to keep them under the radar, an unknown to her enemies. But they had found him somehow. She needed to know. So, she called upon her piece in Vale. The soon to be whole Fall Maiden. "Cinder, I have another task for you."

"Yes, Mistress."

0-0-0

When I woke up, I was uncomfortable for some reason. It wasn't too hot or too cold in the room, it wasn't too bright, I hadn't woken up on the wrong side of the futon. But something was off. I sat there for a few minutes trying to figure out what it was, but I just couldn't find what was bothering me so much. I stopped trying to figure it out when my stomach growled, demanding that I feed it something before going off to work today. I got up and stretched before throwing on some of my old clothes that I didn't mind getting dirty with paint.

I made sure to leave the room quietly, bringing my scroll and my key with. I didn't bother wearing my headphones today, as I would be in the hangar basically all day unless things didn't go to plan or things got spend up. Going into the common room's kitchen, I grabbed myself some bread and put two slices into the toaster and while those were toasting I made a quick fried egg. The toast popped up and I put orange jam on one and the egg on the other before eating them both. The egg could have been better, I admit.

When I left to head off to the elevator, I bumped into Team CRDL heading out into Vale. Cardin's teammates looked like they were about to start ragging on me but Cardin stopped them. "Guys, how about we stop that. It isn't helping anyone and it certainly isn't helping us." They grudgingly accepted and moved off. I smiled and punched Carding in the shoulder playfully.

"Thanks Cardin. Have a good day." He nodded and went off after his team, giving me a quick wave. Cardin was one of the quickest 180s I have ever witnessed, but certainly not the fastest. That was reserved by one video game character. It still made me feel good though, to know that he was going to work on fixing his tendencies and those of his teammates. I returned to my journey to the elevator and wasn't interrupted any further.

Rouge saw me come in and showed me the stuff they used to paint their airships whenever they got a new one or one needed a touchup due to a Nevermore or some bad weather. They had spray cans and aerosol cans and lines for turning paint in buckets to sprayable paint. They had already laid out the materials I would be using today so I thanked them for that before donning a painter's mask and getting to work. First, the fast-drying primer layer which took me about thirty minutes with some help getting to hard to reach areas.

I took off my shoes and socks, deciding to go from bottom to top for the green layer. After making sure the primer was completely dry, I prepped the green paint and masked off a few areas that the other guys had missed in their prep phases before I got here, such as the landing gear area. The green layer took longer than thirty minutes to get done and dry, and it was only the first layer of green that I was doing. When I had gotten to the top of the Bullhead I jumped and made a quick spray to get the spot where I had been standing. I shot the breeze with a few of the engineers that were around, along with some pilots that were getting ready to go on shift for their transport duty to Vale and some third and fourth year missions.

There were no fourth years on campus, but that was because they left Beacon to stay in the Huntsman and Huntress living areas in Vale near the end of third year. They still got professional pilots to bring them to where they needed to be, but they were told to truly fend for themselves in all other matters. They learned in the field rather than in a classroom and were given grades based upon the report Beacon was sent by those who hired them. I got back to work after making sure the paint was dry again and finished up the second layer. I just sat there waiting for the paint to dry before putting on the tape for the patterns, because I didn't want to pull up tape and get paint along with it. That would look weird.

While I was waiting, Nora and Ren showed up. Nora was amazed at all the airships that were currently docked and on pads. Ren simply gazed around, no real emotion showing on his face. He had to pull Nora back a few times to make sure she didn't go running off and damage something. "Hello Echo. How is your project going?"

I pointed to my Bullhead. "It's going just fine. I just wish the paint dried faster so I didn't have to wait as long. I should be done in about, eh, four hours? Maybe slightly longer." I looked at Nora who was struggling to get out of Ren's surprisingly strong grip to get to the Bullhead in question. "What brings you two here? Other than me of course."

"Well, Nora and I heard about the spa that you told Pyrrha about and Nora decided that she wanted to help you so that we could all go there later today." Nora stopped struggling and stood straight with a small salute. "She likes painting."

I raised an eyebrow at the two but shrugged. "I guess it'll work. This layer is almost done drying, and I need to put on tape to make the patterns. Nora, have you head of geometric paint designs?"

"Yeparoonie!" She pulled out her scroll and showed me a few pictures of ones she had done. "This is one that I made in my previous room before coming to Beacon, and this is one that I did three years ago and this is one…" She rambled on about the ones she showed me and I stopped her at the one that I was going to do.

"I'm going to do this one, the one that looks like shard of glass put back together with spaces in between." She just nodded and grabbed a roll of tape. "I want the shapes to be decently sized on the Bullhead, nothing too big or too small. Here, I'll show you about the size I want them." I took four large strips of tape from a different roll and laid them on the Bullhead, forming a space that was about three-fourths my size height wise.

"Got it boss!" She threw another salute to me and got to work. I was working on the other side and the top while she got the bottom. With her help, it only took us ten minutes to get the tape down and then I handed her a spray can that I had prepped earlier with the Neon Blue paint along with a painter's mask. "Spray and pray!" She laughed maniacally before lunging into work, spraying at anything within arm's reach. She moved quickly but laid down an even layer all around wherever she went.

As I was working on my portion, I was talking to Ren. "Did you feel anything off this morning? Like there was something that just went horribly off of plan, but you just couldn't find out what it was?"

He thought for a second before shrugging. "No, nothing stuck out to me. Perhaps it was just your mind tricking you, or you had a dream that you couldn't remember that ended terribly. Nora has those sometimes." Nora peeked around the Bullhead and waved. Ren waved back and she got back to work.

I finished up the side and got to work on the top. "Maybe you're right. It's that, or it's getting to be that time." He grimaced and I laughed. "No worries, if it really does turn out that that's the case, then I'll tell you guys. Don't want anyone on the team feeling off about me. Have you heard anything about those guys that got bitten yesterday?"

Nora zipped to stand beside Ren. "Yeah! They're doing great now, with some help from the docs and nurses and aura infusions they should be out and ready to kick Grimm butt by tomorrow!" She flexed her arms and it looked like she was smiling beneath her mask. She also had a few blue streaks in her orange hair.

"That's good to hear." I dropped down after finishing the top. "Now we have to wait on this layer to dry before the final blue layer, then the sealer layer. Then I have to make sure everything still runs at one-hundred percent. Don't want paint in places it shouldn't be. Get comfortable, this'll take some time." Nora produced her headphones and started to listen to music while Ren sat down on a bench and started to meditate. I decided to follow Ren's example and meditate as well.

We passed the time waiting in a nice state of quiet, all three of us tuning out the sounds around us. It was a nice time of team bonding. My scroll beeped and I stopped meditating. It was a message from Ozpin.

'Another Dust shop has been robbed. No money was taken, only the Dust. If you could investigate when you get the chance. I have already sent a message to the VPD telling them you would be there within the next few days.'

'Sure, I'll be there tomorrow after I'm done in the forge.' After sending the message I saw that it was about time to get the next layer on. I prodded Nora and she jumped up, ready to get back to work. This layer went on faster because I wasn't talking to Ren. When we got done, I stepped back to admire our handiwork. IT looked like it was missing something. "Nora, what is it missing?"

She tapped her finger against her chin before darting around it, looking at it from every angle. She slammed her right fist into an open palm. "A symbol! Like my hammer or Ren's flower or Pyrrha's spear thing or Jaune's double moonbows."

It dawned upon me that I hadn't even made my Huntress emblem. I had spent all this time training and working at this, and I hadn't even made something that said my stuff was mine with just a simple design. It didn't take me long to decide what I wanted to do. When the layer dried, I got to work with a brush and the green paint. My symbol went on both sides of the tail, a symbol that looked like the Arc crest but with two extra arcs below the normal two. It made it look like sound waves in old cartoons. It was a way of incorporating my adopted family into my own emblem.

We let that dry and then peeled off the tape before spraying on the protective sealant. It gave it a nice metallic shine when it finished drying. "Wow, I can't wait to show this to Team RWBY! It's so pretty! And it's so you, Echo."

I smiled and gave her a one-armed hug. "Yeah, I agree with you Nora. I don't think Weiss will like it that much, though. Probably clashes with her aesthetic of clean and simple colors. But who cares? It's mine, and it say that I'm ready to kick butts and take names!"

She laughed with me and we went up to the dorms to get changed before heading into Vale. While we were waiting on everyone else to get ready I snacked on some crackers instead of fixing something for lunch, because we would be getting something to eat after the spa and I didn't want to ruin my appetite this early. When we got together we decided to run by our lockers and get our weapons for protection should we need it. I only went with my gloves though, no need to be carrying around Jolder and my swords when we went out like this in a group. I also made sure to grab my headphones from the room.

We decided to just take a normal transport airship down instead of taking Air Echo. I didn't want to just leave it somewhere in Vale only guarded by some security. Ozpin knows that it wouldn't be enough if someone really wanted to steal it. I made sure that Jaune remembered to take a pill before we boarded, and he didn't throw up or look queasy once. Ren told him that he would learn to control his aura to the point where he wouldn't need motion sickness pills anymore and Jaune just nodded gratefully.

When we landed, I showed them the way to the spa. It was in a fairly out of sight area, at least in the sense that tourists wouldn't know about it on their first visit to Vale. It was run by a lizard Faunus, which is one of the reasons I recommended it in the first place. That, and it was just a really good spa. "Echo! It is good to see you again darling. You haven't come by in a few months and I was starting to worry about you." The owner came up and hug me, which I returned with just as much vigor.

"It's good to see you too, Oralie." I stepped back and motioned to the group gathered behind me. "These are my friends and teammates from Beacon. Starting with Team RWBY, we have Ruby Rose, our very own Grimm reaper."

Ruby gave a little curtsy and smiled. "Nice to meet you!"

"Then there's her partner Weiss Schnee." I pointed to Weiss who looked like she had just swallowed a whole lemon. "Don't worry about her, she'll behave herself. There's Blake Belladonna, our resident bookworm." Blake just gave a small wave. "And finally, there's Yang Xiao Long, Ruby's sister."

"Nice to meet you." Yang held out a hand for a shake and Oralie just hugged her. She was a hugging type of person.

She looked over to my team and her face scrunched up for a moment. "Oh my word. You're Pyrrha Nikos. My son just absolutely adores you."

Pyrrha put on her show smile. "That's nice to hear ma'am. It's always nice to learn I'm being a positive influence."

Oralie just shook her head and tsked at Pyrrha. "Miss Nikos, you can just call me Oralie, there's no need to call me ma'am. It makes me feel old. And you have just got to relax. No need for fake smiles here." She opened her arms for a hug and motioned for Pyrrha to come in. "Come here and give me a hug."

Pyrrha adopted a real smile and gave her a hug that lasted just a few seconds longer than normal. "Thank you, Oralie. It is nice to know that. You may also call me Pyrrha. It's what my friends call me."

"We get enough famous people in here that we have a no fake smiles policy. When they walk out, it's one-hundred percent genuine smiles guaranteed or your money back!" She pointed over to the wall where she had some pictures hung up of her and a few famous actors, actresses, and other assortments of famous people smiling at the camera. She made a stage whisper to Pyrrha. "I've been trying to get Echo to get a picture with me for it since that time years ago, but she refuses me every time."

"And I'll keep refusing, since I don't want to be up there or recognized for anything that I did before Beacon. That was just a girl in the right place at the right time. I even told the police that I didn't want to be fully mentioned. Let me have my mediocre Huntress life please." I rolled my eyes and huffed before continuing on. "Since you already know Pyrrha, let me introduce you to Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie."

"Hi!" Nora rushed up to her and gave her a huge hug that got her to laugh.

"This girlie has some serious strength. And she likes her hugs! I can tell we'll get along swimmingly Nora." After extracting herself from Nora's arms she stepped up to Ren. "So, you're the quiet one of the group. I can just tell by the look in your eyes. My husband is the same way."

"Of course, Oralie." He stuck his hand out and gave her a respectful handshake.

I did a fake drumroll. "And last, but certainly not least, is our fearless leader and my brother, Jaune Arc!" He just gave an awkward wave and scratched at the back of his head.

"Oh, your sister has told me so much about you." He looked shocked for a moment. "Nothing but good things, I assure you. The perfect older brother, at least in her eyes." He looked over to me and I just smiled. "So, what can I do for you all today? Just a regular session, or a deluxe?"

Everyone looked at me, deciding to go for what I decided on. "Let's go with the deluxe today. Pyrrha here needs to relax and it's team bonding today. No hold barred in search of the ultimate relaxation!"

"Okay, that's nine deluxe. How will you all be paying?" I just handed her my card. She swiped it and handed it back to me. "If you will all follow me then." What followed after we changed into the spa robes and cleaned ourselves off initially was nothing short of heaven. Full body massages, manicures and pedicures, hot tubs and mud baths while wearing face masks with cucumbers.

Weiss took the longest to relax, but once she did she was practically out of it. Jaune talked about life in Ansel while Pyrrha talked about life in Mistral, the nice parts of it at least. Nora and Ren told us all about their journeys, leaving out the beginnings for obvious reasons. I talked about life in Vale, what it was like working for Otto and living alone as a ten-year-old. Ruby and Yang talked about Patch, and their dad, Qrow and Zwei. Blake and Weiss were quiet though, they obviously didn't want to talk about their past, and we didn't pressure for them after Yang tried to and was stopped by icy glares.

We left extremely satisfied. Weiss said that she might even come back every now and again for the excellent service. We headed to a nearby diner that had super great milkshakes and to die for fries. After eating our fill, we got back on an airship to Beacon. Jaune had forgotten to take a pill and just about threw up, but Pyrrha started to rub his back in little circles while channeling aura to help with the motion sickness. We parted ways when we entered the dorm, Ruby's team deciding to watch a movie while our team went to go to bed. We were asleep within minutes due to how relaxed we were.

0-0

Roman Torchwick, Master Criminal and The Finest Gentleman Thief, was in one of his many hideaways within the city of Vale. He was planning yet another heist to gather Dust for his newest 'employer'. He was also busy in gathering information for her. This morning, she had told him to be on the lookout for anyone that might look like they knew too much. If he didn't deliver within the month, she would burn his balls over an open flame. Literally. Thankfully, he had some competent help in this little endeavor.

"Neo, anything yet?" He tapped his cane against the table before lighting a cigar using his personal lighter.

A short lady with pink and brown hair came out of the shadows wile twirling around a parasol. 'Nothing yet, Roman. It's only been a day.' She signed to him.

"Yeah, it's only been a day, but that also means that I only have twenty-seven more days before I have to fear for my balls. I kinda like them, if you haven't noticed."

She rolled her eyes. 'Yes, you make sure to tell me every day how much you love them. You aren't exactly the quietest in your personal times.'

Roman balked. He was sure that he had soundproofed that room! "No matter. Just get back out there and tell me if you find anyone."

'You owe me four gallons of ice cream when this is all over.' She left before he could say anything, shattering into a million little glass shards that disappeared after a brief second.

"Freaking ice cream lover…" he trailed off before going back to his diagrams. He had much more Dust to steal and not all that much time. "I really wish I knew her damn endgame here."

0-0-0

After waking up and going through my morning routines, I grabbed my gloves and my new kit and headed down to the forge to meet with Ruby. She was eagerly waiting outside the doors with a massive grin on her face. She was bouncing backwards and forwards on her feet. "Yes! You're finally here! Let's get this thing done!" She dragged me, or at least tried to, into the forge and dropped a diagram on the table in front of us. "Let me introduce you to the Hurt and Pain blueprint one point oh!"

I studied it and saw that each knuckle was separate and linked to its own Dust type. The Dust storage was properly protected and sealed, designed to be opened even in the middle of battle. Material had to be added to my gloves to make them long enough for the metal parts, but I knew how to sew so it was no problem. "Looks great Rubes. This shouldn't take all that long with both of us working on it. You get to working on the guard and storage while I lengthen the gloves. We can etch and get the knuckles done when everything else is ready."

She nodded and got to work while I got a needle and some thread along with some high-quality cloth in the same shade as my current gloves. I wrapped the cloth around my arm up to my elbow and cut out the section, using the cut out portion to cut out another equal portion. I lined up the stitching on the sides and stitched the end on before stitching along the inside to seal everything up. Making sure everything still felt right, I repeated the process on the other glove. Ruby walked up to me and showed me the first guard and knuckles.

"Is that good enough?" She looked confident in her work. Like she knew the answer already.

Which she did.

"Yeah, it's perfect." She did a little dance and went to work on the second one. I welded the guard onto the current one using the best materials we had, just to make sure it would stay on. I gave it a good test tug and nearly ripped the cloth part. Yep, it was on just right. The knuckles were easy to replace, I just had to take out the old ones and put the new ones in after laying down the Dust lines. Neutral Dust and a needle worked their way in and out of the cloth in straight lines, coming down from the guard to the places where the knuckles would be. Neutral Dust didn't have a charge unless it was touching another form of Dust along with a person's aura, so it was the perfect conductor for my knuckles.

After finishing the lines, I etched in Dust to the knuckles, connecting them to the lines I sewed in the gloves. The knuckles had vent holes for the Dust to channel out of once they reached the bit. Ruby handed me the other guard and I duplicated the process. After putting on the finishing touches of my new emblem I put them on and did a few test jabs. They were noticeably heavier than before, but that meant more weight in my hand to hand attacks. The guards were also thicker and longer, for better defense.

"Thanks for all the help Ruby. I got to head into Vale again right now, but I tell you what. I'm going to pick up some strawberry cookies on my way back to pay you back for this." She squealed in excitement and gave me a huge hug before dashing off to wherever she was going now. I paid for the stuff and went to my locker to get my weapons. After that, it was a short ride to Vale and a long walk to the Dust shop.

When I reached it, I took a look at the police tape hanging around and the few cops standing about. The glass was shattered outwards towards the street, broken from the inside. It didn't go that far and I couldn't see any bullet casings, so it was probably broken either by a grunt in show of power, or Roman smashed it with his cane. There wasn't any blood outside, so there was definitely no body thrown out the window. "Hey, you shouldn't be here kid."

I looked to the police officer that said that. He was about five seven, five eight, had this ridiculous facial hair for a cop, and was eating a donut. "I was told by Headmaster Ozpin that I was expected down here sometime soon. Today seemed to be a good day to be here."

He burped and wiped some crumbs away from his mouth. He tilted his head to speak into his radio. "Hey, uh, dispatch, we have a kid here saying she was told by the Headmaster of Beacon… Yeah. Short, girl, pink hair, swords, axe, a pair of cat ear headphones." He listened to the person and his eyebrows shot up. "You mean that this is **her**? Dang. Alright, thanks for the info." He looked back at me. "Okay, you're clear. Just don't touch anything without talking to us first."

"I'll need a pair of gloves." He handed me a pair of nitrile gloves and I took off my now gauntlets to put them on before putting my gauntlets back on. "Thanks. I'll try not to touch anything unless I need to." I walked past the police tape and into the store. Everything seemed perfectly fine in here, except for some glass that found its way inside. There weren't any crime markers on the floor, the ones present were placed next to the cash register and the Dust dispensers. The cash was still in the register, looking like it hadn't even been touched. The crystal displays and dispensers were completely empty though, not even an ounce of Dust left.

I checked the back of the store and found that the place had been emptied out. A small gouge in the floor piqued my interest. I kneeled down and inspected it. It looked like someone had put a chainsaw down here and let it run for a second. Fucking Banesaw. I'm surprised he's running with Roman. Then again, Adam is out of the picture, so it makes sense. I look at the floor of the main shop and spot a few round spots leading up to the register. Roman's cane left those marks, probably fired a flare and didn't clean it before putting it on these floors.

I walked out and tore off the gloves that had been handed to me. "Thanks, I got what I needed. I'll be out of your hair now."

The officer didn't say anything as I walked away. Then, right as soon as I was about to turn the corner, I got this feeling I was being watched. It was nowhere near Port's level, but it was still like a blade was pressed against me. I whipped around, drawing my blades, looking for whoever was there. I caught sight of two black tails of hair go around the corner. Neo was on my case now. Roman would know. I snorted and put my swords back in their scabbards. Time to tell Ozpin what I know. But first, getting Ruby's cookies and a well-deserved bath to get that feeling out of my skin.

0-0

Roman was a busy man now, having just successfully robbed another Dust store. He was directing the animals, telling then where to put the Dust they had gotten in the haul. "Come on, we don't have all day for this, you stupid animals! No! Put the **red** Dust in the **red** container! It's so fucking simple a mouse could do it!" If you couldn't tell, he needed better help. These guys and gals were dumber than a sack of bricks.

Neo came out of the shadows with a grin stuck to her face. 'I have good news! For you and your boys.'

"Good, something good actually happening to distract me from these incompetent stains. What is it?"

'I found this little girlie that likes to snoop around crime scenes.' Neo held up her scroll to show Roman a picture of the girl. It was from the back, but he knows that he had seen those weapons somewhere before… 'They didn't say her name, but they knew who she was. Ozpin sent her.'

"Well, that is great news, Neo! I'm buying you eight gallons of ice cream for that!" he dialed up Cinder's number and it was answered after one ring.

"What is it? This better be good Torchwick."

He looked at the picture of the girl again. "We have someone who we think is snooping around for Ozpin.

The clacking of something was heard over the scroll and Cinder practically purred. "Good. Send me a picture and information. You're safe… for now." She hung up.

"Neo, if you would do the honors?" She nodded and hit the send button on her scroll. "Now to find out who this little trouble seeker is." He dialed up another number. "Hey, Junior, we need to talk."

0-0

It was getting to be later in the day and Echo still hadn't returned. Ruby had said that she was going down to Vale for something and that she was going to be bringing back some cookies. This had assuaged Team JNPER's fears somewhat, but they were still there. None more than Jaune Arc, though. He kept on remembering what Oralie said yesterday about Echo saying he was the best big brother in her eyes. He was currently pacing in the room, with Pyrrha and Ren watching him. Nora was tossing something from one hand to another.

"Jaune, you need to calm down. She's only been gone for three hours. You said yourself that she is a capable Huntress in training, I am sure that she can fight her way out of a bad situation." Pyrrha was currently trying to calm her partner down. Ren was just content to watch him as he thought about what might possibly be holding their teammate up.

Nora jumped up, the mystery object still in her hands. "If you're so worried, how about we go and find her!? We could probably find her in no time flat if we really search hard."

Jaune stopped and thought about it. "Yeah, we could. We tried messaging her, but she didn't pick up so the next thing to do is organize a search party. Pyrrha, you're with me searching the north end of Vale and Ren and Nora will search the south end. We meet up in an hour if we don't find her. If you find her, message the others where you are." The others exchanged looks but nodded.

Ren finally noticed that Nora had something in her hands. "Nora, what is that?"

She tried to hide it behind her back and pretend it was nothing, but Ren kept on staring at her. She broke under his gaze and held her hand up. "It's that Dust crystal Jaune found yesterday. I was just tossing it around!"

"Nora, put it back in the drawer. It isn't yours to mess with."

"Yeah, well, Jaune said he didn't put it there either and he doesn't know what it really is, so it doesn't really belong to him either."

Jaune stepped forward and held his hand out. "Nora, please give me the Dust back so we can go look for my sister."

Nora thought about it for a second before chucking the crystal at the door, which was open and allowing Echo entrance to the room. "Never COPPER!"

"What is going…?" Echo looked up just in time to see a Dust crystal collide with her face. When it hit, there was a bright flash of light that blinded everyone, including Team RWBY who had their door open due to the fact that Ruby had just received cookies from Echo. When everyone got their eyesight back, they looked to the door and saw that Echo had disappeared.

"Oh my gosh! Nora!"

"I swear, I did not know that that was going to happen." She held up her hands straight up into the air.

"Well, maybe you should…" The lecture was stopped when they heard the shifting of clothes against metal. Everyone looked down to see that Echo had not disappeared entirely. In her place was a toddler, probably not even four years old.

Jaune stopped dead where he was standing and made a few choking noises. "Oh, dear Oum, I'm going to be so dead."

The young girl looked up to him and smiled brightly. "Daddy!"

And on that day, let it be known, that Jaune Arc fainted by being called daddy.


	12. Chapter 11- Ultimate Spy

**Reviewer Acknowledgements**

 **King Kimi- Okay. There's no need to be sorry though, you like what you like and don't like what you don't like.**

 **DamascusVazarin- Again, understandable. I try to make my chapters as interesting as can be with my limited writing skills.**

 **W- Yes, cliffhangers for days yo!**

 **C0de- Just read and find out.**

 **Guest 5- Holy crap, thank you immensely. I apologize for the jumpiness of the transitions; my mind just tells me that that's how they should be. Most 'dialogue tagging' can be inferred easily, and those that can't are done just for the fun of it. Just imagine a character saying, "Holy Hand Grenades in a handbasket!" Without any indication on who said it. It could be anyone! And I am glad you do find the writing humorous.**

 **Tobythegoodguy- Yes indeed, what the fuck. Keep you weirded out and on your toesies.**

 **A.N. This chapter will be told through other's perspectives, just FYI.**

 **PS.- Regarding last chapter, this is mostly an attempt to fill out characters some more, make them more human. I have plans, so if you think that ships are going to happen simply because they are mentioned think again. The only ships I have set in stone is OCxPenny because it was the first request that came in. I may throw up a poll later to see what other ships people want to see, so don't be distressed if you see the potential of a ship happening.**

0-0-0-0

0-0

Jaune woke up slowly, the back of his head aching for some reason. "Guys, I just had the weirdest dream." He realized after he said this that nobody else was in the room with him and he was in his normal clothes instead of sleep clothes. He rubbed at his eyes and got up, checking the time on his scroll. Seven in the morning, it read, two hours before classes. And nobody but him was in the room. Why would they be gone this early?

He saw a pile of equipment over underneath one of the desks and realized that it was Echo's. He chuckled. "Looks like someone didn't want to go to the lockers yesterday after coming back. Well, at least she came back." What happened yesterday rushed back into his mind and he paled. His eyes darted around the room trying to find Echo, but he didn't see her anywhere. He burst out into the hall and dashed off, forgetting his scroll in the room. It was flashing with messages from his team.

0-0

Meanwhile, in the room across the hall, everyone else was already awake and dressed. They were sitting around a sleeping Echo; the young girl was hugging a pillow to her body and suckling on a finger. She was also wearing an improvised towel as they hadn't found anything that would fit her. Weiss looked over to Nora, taking her eyes off the cute thing right in front of her. "And you're sure you didn't channel any aura into the crystal before you threw it? Any at all?"

Nora shook her head. "Absolutely dootly sure. No aura at all."

Weiss played with her ponytail over her shoulder. "Then, I have absolutely no clue on how to reverse this. I've never seen any kind of Dust that could do this to someone!"

Ruby put a hand over Weiss' mouth, quieting the girl. She also held a finger to her lips in the universal gesture for quiet. "Weiss, you're going to wake her up." When Weiss began to shake, Ruby took her hand away. She didn't want to make her partner angry.

"Yes, well, let us make sure not to do that. I'm sure none of us are prepared to take care of a child today. We still have classes in less than two hours. Who's going to bring this cutie to Headmaster Ozpin?" Everyone just looked at her weirdly.

Yang, seeing a chance to tease Weiss, didn't let that slip by. "Weiss, did you just call Echo a cutie?"

Weiss stammered and her face became red. "I-I did no such thing! You were just hearing things!"

Everyone shook their heads and Blake looked up from a book on Dust to look at her again. "No, I am absolutely sure that you called Echo a cutie."

Weiss looked for a way to get out of the situation. When it didn't magically appear, she held her head down. "Fine, I will admit that I called her cute." She pointed a finger at her face. "But you can't lie, that is absolutely cute!"

"Rude to point." The small voice in the middle of them said, sounding sleepy still. "White hair rude."

Yang couldn't help herself and began an uproar of laughter. "Look, she doesn't even know Weiss for longer than a minute and she knows she's rude! This is gold!"

Echo turned to face the person laughing and a smile wormed its way onto her face. "Mama!"

Yang froze. Echo toddled over to her after a few seconds of pushing herself to her feet. She wrapped the older girl in a hug, which meant that she wrapped her arms around Yang's arm, as that is the only spot she can reach right now that she can wrap her arms around. "No no no, I'm not your mom Echo. My name is Yang."

The smile left Echo's face and her eyes began to well up with tears. She began to shake and a few sobs escaped her lips. "Not mama? Where's mama?"

Yang looked to see if the others were going to help, but they were frozen as well. She held out her other hand to Echo and took her in for a hug. "I'm not sure where your mama is, but we'll find her. Don't you worry."

"Promise?"

Yang pulled back and held out a pinky. "Pinky promise." They shook each other's pinkies and Echo wiped at her face with a hand.

"Hungry." Just then her stomach growled. "Carry me?" She held her arms up and made a grabby motion, making everyone sigh at the cuteness of the motion. Yang just picked her up and held her against her chest, so Echo snuggled into the warmth. "Food, go!" She pointed at the bathroom door triumphantly.

Ren went over to the door that opened into the hallway and opened it. "Food is this way."

Echo simply moved her finger to the now open door and said again, "Food, go!" Everyone nodded and began to file out of the room. Blake was the last one out, still trying to find an answer in the book. She was certain that a book would have the answer to their new problem, she bet on it. It was a good thing that it was this early in the morning, as few students were out in the halls and the commons at this time. There were still a few and their looks of speculation were met with no answers.

Nora was playing peek-a-boo with the young girl over Yang's shoulder, getting cute giggles out of the bat Faunus. "Peek-a-boo! I can't see you, I can't see you, I can't. Peek-a-boo!"

Echo giggled and kicked her feet, kicking against Yang's assets. "Hey, careful where you're kicking young lady. You could really hurt someone doing that."

Echo pouted and crossed her arms. "No fun." She still stopped kicking, but she also didn't look Yang in the face anymore until she was put down at a chair in the kitchen. She had to stand in the chair to be able to see onto the top of the table. She began to try to scramble to stand atop it, but Yang pushed her back down. "No! I climb!"

"No. No climbing." Yang waved a finger in her face. "You don't get food if you're a bad girl."

Echo pouted again and sat down roughly in her seat. "Big blonde meanie." A small cup of milk was placed on the table above her and she stood up again to reach for it. "Yay, milk!" She gripped her tiny hands against the glass and picked it up, bringing it to her face for a sip. She began to tip backwards as she tipped the glass back.

Ruby darted forward to catch her before she fell out of the chair. "Careful! Here, let me." She took the glass from the girl and began to tip the glass so Echo could drink. Echo began to messily drink the liquid, dropping more than a few splatters of the white liquid onto the chair and herself. It was a good thing she was wearing a towel already, otherwise she would have had to be changed into different clothes due to how messy she would have been. Once the milk was all gone, Ruby put the glass back onto the table. "See? All done!"

Echo let out a small burp. "Done!" She looked over to Ren, who was doing something at the counter. "What he doing?"

Nora looked to see Ren was peeling an orange. "He's peeling an orange for you silly! What/ Were you expecting to get a whole orange with the nasty skin and everything?"

Echo's eyes lit up and she made the grabbing motions again. "Orange! Now!" She dropped on the seat again and began to scoot herself to the edge. Her feet dropped off it and she swung herself around to dangle off it. Her feet barely touched the floor, so when she dropped she went to her butt. "Ouchy!" But she didn't let this short pain stop her from reaching her ultimate prize, no, she powered on like a true Huntress. She tugged on Ren's pant leg. "Orange, now!"

He looked down to her, an amused expression on his face. "What's the magic word?"

"Abracadabra!" He shook his head. "Alakazam?" Another head shake. Echo was beginning to pout. "Open sesame?" Nope, another head shake. Echo looked like she was scrambling her brain looking for the word. "Please?" A nod from the quiet man and he lowered the now peeled and sectioned orange slices to the girl. "Yes!" She didn't even bother going back to the table, instead deciding to plop herself down on the floor to eat her prize of sweet juicy oranges.

Blake groaned and put the book down. "I couldn't find anything. This book was useless. The first time I ever said a book was useless, and it happened now. Let it be written into the annals of history." Echo had finished off her orange slices and toddled on over to the book. Her fingers were still sticky with the juices and she opened a page of the book, to the fire Dust section. She rubbed her dirty hand against the page and it suddenly caught fire. "HOW IN THE FUCK DID SHE DO THAT?!"

"Fuck!" Echo giggled happily and clapped her hands together, watching the rising flames engulf the now useless papers bound together. Ren gathered a glass of water and splashed it over the book, snuffing out the flames. "Fuck!"

Yang glared at her partner. "Look at what you did! Now she won't stop saying it!" she looked to Echo and crouched to look her in the eye. "We don't say that word, it's rude."

Echo tilted her head and looked at Blake. "But she said fuck!"

"Yes, she did, but she shouldn't have. We don't say that word in polite company, and even then, only adults should say it."

"Fine." Echo sat down on the floor again, sticking her dirty hands into her armpits. She recoiled at the feeling of sticky hands being where they shouldn't be. "Eww."

"Come on, let's get you washed up." Yang picked her up and brought her over to the sink, tilting her hair away so it wouldn't be grabbed with grubby hands. She brought the faucet over to the edge of the sink and began to wash off Echo's hands and face. "See, all clean now. How about we get you some real clothes so you can get out of the towel?"

"Yee." Echo dropped off the counter and before anyone could stop her she dashed out of the room, the sound of bare feet slapping against stone sounded off the halls.

"Ruby, catch up to her!" Ruby dashed off to catch the fleeing child. "Alright, guys, we cannot, and I repeat, cannot let Ozpin or Goodwitch know about this. Who knows what could happen. We get this fixed by ourselves and no-one else learns about Nora's mistake." Everyone nodded and ran down the hall after Ruby and Echo.

0-0

Today felt like a good day. Ozpin hadn't called her to get any paperwork done, or to fix his coffee machine. She got her hours of beauty sleep and was ready to face the day. Glynda Goodwitch opened the door of her room and stepped out, ready to face the day of a Deputy Headmistress. What she was not ready for was a young girl to come bolting around the corner being chased by Miss Rose. The child ducked into her open door and Miss Rose skidded to a halt.

"Oh, uh, hi Professor Goodwitch. This isn't what it looks like, like, at all." She giggled nervously.

Glynda raised her eyebrow, staring down at the student in front of her. "What it looks like is you brought a young child into Beacon and are chasing her around the halls. And she wasn't even wearing proper clothing, it was only a towel. Care to explain?"

Ruby gulped audibly. She was saved from explaining when the child burst out of the room behind her while wearing one of her capes. How had the child even gotten one? They were hung up in her closet. "Well, looks like I gotta go!" Miss Rose dashed off after the child again, disappearing around the corner. Glynda held her nose between her fingers and sighed. Today had been going so well.

0-0

Jaune was still looking for Echo. He had checked the locker rooms, a few empty classrooms, a few occupied classrooms, the mess hall. He had just about given up when something bumped into his legs and a bump was heard. "Ouchy." He looked own to see Echo sitting there on the floor, rubbing at her face. She looked up to see what she had run into and her face lit up in another grin. "Daddy!"

Jaune took a deep breath. _"Don't faint again, Arc. Keep it together."_ He kneeled down and inspected Echo. She looked just like she had years ago, he remembered the pictures of her three-year-old self and his four-year-old self standing together. He didn't really remember anything from that time himself, but that didn't really matter right now. "No, I'm not dad. But, I am your big brother! I'm Jaune!"

The grin on Echo's face didn't leave, but she jumped up and leaped at him. "Bro!" He wrapped his arms around her and noticed that she was wearing one of Goodwitch's capes. Color drained from his face and Ruby came around the corner. "No, red no catch! Bro, save me!" She buried herself in his arms and Ruby stopped in front of them.

"Do you know just how slippery your sister is? Man, Yang thought I was tough as a kid. We have to get her out of here before Professor Goodwitch shows up!" She hauled Jaune to his feet and grabbed his arm. "Come on! To the air pads!" She dragged him to the landing pads, where an air ship was waiting for some reason. "I have to message the others, hold on a sec." She whipped out her scroll and sent a group message to the others.

They all arrived moments later, with Ren and Weiss panting for breath. "Decent job catching her, sis. She can freaking run, holy cow."

Ruby shook her head and they boarded the air ship. "I didn't catch her though, Jaune did." She turned to Jaune. "Jaune, we're heading into Vale to get her clothes. Just thought you should know."

Jaune deadpanned. "Yes, Ruby, I could guess. What I'm wondering is, how did she get one of Professor Goodwitch's capes? Did you raid her stash or something?"

Everyone chuckled at that and the doors closed. "No, she did that herself. Ran in and ran back out wearing it. She saved me from having to explain why she's like this."

Jaune began to feel queasy, and Pyrrha did her magic. "So, what happened while I was out?" They told him the events that transpired while he had been unconscious, covering the time it took to get to the Vale landing pad. "Wow, she set fire to a book by just rubbing her hands against it? That's some serious skill there."

They made their way over to the nearest mall and started searching the clothes store for decent children's clothing. Weiss' and Yang's suggestions were shot down for being too expensive looking and too Yang looking. When they had finally gotten a good outfit picked out, Weiss payed for it and they got on the transport back to Beacon. They were met by Goodwitch and Ozpin at the landing pad. "Students, may I ask why you decided to Beacon an hour before classes started? And why you have a child with you."

Echo, in her little pink shirt and beige cargo shorts, looked at Ozpin. Her lips became a thin line and she snorted. "Old man." The group couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Clothes get! Achie… achee…"

"Achievement." Weiss gave her the word.

"Achievement get!" Echo held her fist up triumphantly. "No class, boring."

Ozpin looked closely at Echo and took a sip from his mug. "I see. Is this Miss Arc?"

"Echo DeVris Arc, I be! Future Huntress extra ordinary!" She put her hands against her hips and jutted her chest out proudly, a stray wind catching the purple cape hung across her shoulders. "Normal knees!" Yang burst out laughing at this and Ruby covered her face with her hands.

Ozpin chuckled. "I believe the word you were looking for was extraordinary."

Echo stiffened and held her nose in the air. "Meant that! Bee's knees!" Yang was rolling on the ground at this point and Ruby held her cloak down to cover her face. "You no stop me, old man and auntie!"

Goodwitch stepped back, an indignant look painted on her face. "Auntie!? I'll have you know that I'm not that old! Or an aunt!"

Ozpin looked at the others, ignoring the staring contest Goodwitch had gotten into with Echo. "I have seen this before. I have good news, and bad news."

"We'll take the good news first." Jaune was quick to jump for the good news.

"We have seen this before and we know how to fix it."

Pyrrha looked skeptically at him. "But…?"

"The soonest we can get this fixed is in a week. We don't have the Dust required to turn her back in stock at Beacon as it is extremely rare and expensive." He looked at Jaune. "And a question for you. Where did you get the dust to make this happen initially?"

He held up his hands. "I have no clue, sir. It was just in the pocket of my hoodie when we got back from Forever Fall. I never picked it up and never knew about it until we were back in the dorms. Nora was playing with it yesterday and threw it at her when she came into the room."

"I see. You should get to class now, before Peter starts to hunt for you all. He does enjoy hunting down students who are tardy." He looked over to Goodwitch. "Come Glynda, we have orders to fill out. Also, if you would take Miss Arc with us."

Echo darted over to Jaune's leg. "No, me staying with bro! You no take me alive!" She held on for dear life when Goodwitch started to try and tear her from Jaune's leg. It looked like the pants leg was going to rip before Ozpin stopped her.

"Glynda, I do believe that Miss Arc will be fine with her brother for now. Now that I think about it, we aren't suited for taking care of a child. Come, we should start on work before it starts to pile up." He started to walk away and Goodwitch followed him. She looked back and saw Echo sticking out from behind Jaune's leg, pulling at her eyelid and blowing a raspberry at her. She huffed in annoyance and turned away, following the Headmaster to his office.

"That went better than expected." Blake had found a new book to look through for answers at the mall, and had stopped her searching to watch the exchange.

"You're telling me. Come on, let's get to class. I do not want to be hunted down like a Grimm by Port." Jaune picked up Echo and walked off to class. The others shuddered at the thought and followed after him. He still was wearing his clothes from yesterday and not his uniform.

Ruby leaned over to Yang. "Do you think we should tell him or…?"

"Nah, he'll figure it out eventually."

They entered the classroom just as Port was getting his weapon down from the plaque on the wall. "Well darn it. You just had to come in and spoil the fun. I was going to have the entire class go on a man hunt." He looked over the group and saw Jaune. "Arc, my boy, where is your uniform!?"

He looked down at his clothes and groaned. "I forgot it, sir. I'll go get it now." He handed Echo over to Yang and walked out of the class to go change into his uniform.

Port looked at the child in his classroom. "And who do we have here? She looks familiar."

Yang held Echo out in front of her, showing her off to Port. "It's Echo! Nora was playing with some Dust and this happened. Can she stay?"

Port chuckled. "Of course she can stay! My lessons are for everyone, no matter their age. Go on, sit down and get ready for an epic tale of adventure!" Everyone got to their seats and they waited for Jaune to get back before Port launched into his tale of grandeur. Most everyone was promptly asleep, with only five students still awake. One of those was Echo, who seemed to be greatly enjoying the story if the excited grin on her face was anything to go by.

As time went on, and Port's droning went on, the grin on her face changed into a look of deep concentration. Pyrrha was watching this little girl and was wondering exactly what was going through her head. _"What if she's thinking about facing off against a Grimm? Thinking about a big scary monster. I won't let her, she's too cute. That, and Jaune would be absolutely devastated if she got hurt."_

When there were only five minutes left and Port was wrapping up his story, her hand shot into the air and Port cut himself off. "Yes, is there something you want to ask me?"

"Bathroom!" Echo started to squirm in her spot, desperate to hold in whatever she needed to do.

"Of course you may go. It's just down the hall to the left." Echo hopped down and rushed over to the door, jumping up to turn the knob and dash out of the room. Pyrrha got up to follow her but Port stopped her. "Miss Nikos, class is still in session and I was just about to finish the lesson, please stay seated."

" _Please be safe, Echo."_

0-0

The bell rang, signaling the end of the first class, and Velvet sped out of her seat and into the halls. She didn't want to be stuck in the throng of students pressing to get out and to their next class. She honestly did not know why Beacon set their classes on such a tight schedule. There was literally no time in between classes, you were expected to be in a classroom one second and the other classroom the next second.

As she was rushing through the halls to get to her next class, she bumped into something she didn't see as she was turning a corner. "I am so sorry about that, I was just heading to my next class and wasn't watching where I was going." She looked up expecting to see an angry student but instead saw something extremely cute. In front of her, also on the floor, was a little bat Faunus girl with pink hair and mocha colored skin. She would say she was Echo's sister with how similar they were. "Are you okay?"

The little girl looked up at Velvet and her gaze travelled higher. "Bunny!" She hopped up and hugged Velvet, startling her. "Bunny good. Bro likes bunny."

Velvet's face heated. There was now a cute little girl saying that her brother liked her. And she was hugging her. She snapped out of it and pulled the girl off of her. "Let's find your brother, I'm sure he's looking for you right now. What's your name?"

The little girl smiled and put her hands on her hips dramatically. "Echo DeVris Arc! Huntress extraordinary! The bee's knees! Devou… devoo…" She deflated a bit before going back to triumphant. "Eater of worlds!"

Oh no. This could not be happening. The little girl, now revealed to be Echo, had just told her Jaune liked her. Now, while she did like the blond knight, she wouldn't say she liked him that much. Everyone knew about his previous attempts to woo Weiss Schnee, and how much of a failure they were. She didn't want to deal with that, and ruin the friendship they had made through Echo. "Let's go find Jaune before my teammates find you huh?"

"I'm Batman!" She then darted off down the hall, into the mass of students that were now filling it. "Look at me when I'm charging at you!" Students dodged out of the way of the child missile, worried looks on their faces.

Velvet chased after her. She didn't want her to get hurt, and she most definitely did not want her to run into the resident bully. She would take Coco finding her over those two other possibilities. "Echo, get back here!" If Echo even heard her, she didn't make any indication of stopping or even slowing down. In fact, she seemed to be going even faster. "Please!"

Echo stopped dead in her tracks. "Okay!" She walked calmly back to Velvet, grabbing onto her leg. "We go!"

Velvet sighed and picked her up, holding her to her side. "Okay, where's your brother?"

Echo shrugged. "Dunno! Home?"

"No, he's not at your home, he's here at Beacon. Any idea where he could be here?"

"He's here?! Where? Where's bro?" She started to squirm around, looking for her brother.

Velvet was beginning to get slightly agitated. "No, Echo, he isn't here in the halls with us. I am asking you where he could be in Beacon. The entire school."

"Hey, Vel, who's the kid?" Oh no, here's a problem. Coming up behind Velvet was Coco and the rest of the team. "She looks familiar. Another Arc come to check the school out or something?"

"No, Coco, she isn't. This is Echo." Velvet sighed exhaustibly. "I have no fu-"

Yatsuhashi stepped forward and covered Velvet's mouth. "Velvet, don't say that in front of a child."

Echo looked up to the green giant and surprised everyone still in the hall. "Let the bunny say fuck!"

Everybody's jaws dropped. Here was this cute little girl, probably like three-years-old, and she had just yelled the f-word as loud as she could in the hall. And she continued to say it. Loudly.

"Let the bunny say fuck! Let the bunny say fuck! Let the bunny say fuck!" She was beating her little arms against Yatsu's arm the held Velvet's mouth closed.

He pulled it back and Velvet just quietly said, "Fucking clue how she got like this." And with that, Echo went silent once more. She smiled at Velvet. "Where did you learn that word?" She was going to hurt someone.

"Black."

"Black?" Velvet didn't know any student or teacher with the name of Black. "Who's that?"

"Black!" Echo waved her arms around, like it made perfect sense.

"There isn't anyone named Black that we know of." She was scanning the crowd of gathered students who suddenly had somewhere very important to be.

Fox stepped up to her. "Maybe she's saying the person was either wearing black or has black hair. That, or their name is close to black."

Velvet processed that for a second before she remembered the B of Team RWBY. "Blake Belladonna."

Echo nodded sagely. "Black."

And so, the entire team went to find Blake of Team RWBY, completely blowing off their next class. The first place they checked was the team's dorm room, where only Yang was. She told them that Weiss was in class, Ruby was down at the forge again working on Crescent Rose, and Blake had gone down to the library. She asked them why they were looking for her, but left without answering. She hadn't seen Echo.

The group moved to the library and fanned out, looking for the black themed girl. Yatsuhashi found her in a quiet corner, reclining in a beanbag chair. She didn't see or hear him approach. "Blake Belladonna, we need to talk."

She jumped slightly, spooked. "Okay? What about?"

Instead of responding he walked away, and she followed. He motioned to his team that he had found her and they converged around her. Velvet was still carrying Echo, who was slightly tired and drowsy looking. "Blake, did you teach Echo the f-word?"

She looked at the team surrounding her. She held her book protectively to her chest. "Accidentally. I wasn't really thinking when I said it, she just lit a book on fire." She licked her lips. "By touching it. No fire Dust or anything. Her hands just had orange juice on them and she rubbed them against the book and it went up in flames. Forgive me please."

Velvet simply nodded. "Fine. Just be more careful. She is impressionable right now and we don't need her saying things without knowing about them completely. Children need to have their own censor boxes around them. You don't say curse words where they can hear them."

Blake pointed at Echo's ears. "She has a big box then. I'll be careful from now on, can I go back to my book?"

"Yes." Blake went back to her corner. "Now, she's going to need better clothes than these."

"Coco no."

"Coco yes!" Coco grabbed Echo out of Velvet's arms and rushed to the landing pads, her team chasing behind her. This devolved into a team shopping trip for Echo, where Coco picked out clothes for the young girl. Then they had lunch and ice cream, and everything went to shit after that.

They let their eyes wander off of her for one second. One second! And then she was gone, somewhere in Vale, without her friends or family. "She's going to kill us." Fox stated.

Coco waved her hand dismissively. "No, she wouldn't do that. Maybe she'll get mad at us, but she wouldn't kill us." Her scroll beeped and she looked at who was messaging her now. Her glasses dropped to the end of her nose. "Badwitch might though."

The team shuddered in fright, and Velvet succinctly said their feelings. "Fuck."

0-0

Neo moved through the streets of Vale like she normally did during the day, in disguise. She had just left the ice cream parlor she frequented with a cone stacked with rocky road ice cream. She took little licks of it and looked around the streets for a sucker to rob and kill. One of her favorite pastimes was tricking burly looking men into thinking she was a young girl looking for an enjoyable time and then utterly decimate them in a dark alleyway. Her parasol was hanging from her hip, swinging lightly as she skipped.

She realized that she was being followed, after she left the parlor, and a small feral grin showed before she trained her face back to the sweet smile. She didn't bother finishing her ice cream, Roman would have more back at his hideout, so she just threw it onto the street where it was crushed by a passing car's tires. She let her hand fall to her parasol and she unhooked it from her belt before opening it wide and twirling it around and fanning herself like she was getting hot. She ducked into a nearby alleyway and just stood there waiting for her tail to come into sight.

She was disappointed when a little girl walked into the mouth of the alleyway, a thumb stuck in her mouth. Neo left her hiding spot and stood before the young girl, looking down on her. She looked like the one she had taken a picture of just yesterday. She took out her scroll and typed a message out. 'Why did you decide to follow me?'

"You littered." The girl burped. "'Scuse me."

Neo rolled her eyes. 'The birds will eat the stuff. Where are your parents?'

"Dunno. I like your hair." This little girl was freaking stupid. She had just followed a stranger into an alleyway just because she liked her hair. "How's it so shiny?"

'Eating correctly, exercise, and then rewarding myself with ice cream.' She wasn't going to tell her that she also used the blood of her victims on her hair. The kid didn't need to know that. 'If you come with me, I can help find your parents.'

"Okay!" The girl grabbed onto her hand and stood beside her.

Neo then used her semblance to go to the hideout Roman was currently at. He was standing at his planning table looking over some plans. Most likely his next heist. That, or he was planning on the heist in just under a month at the docks. The Schnee company one. Roman heard the sound of shattering glass and looked away from the plans. "Neo, what are you doing…" he saw the little girl holding her hand. "What's with the kid? We aint a babysitting service."

'Doesn't she look familiar to you? And I told her I would help find her parents.' She led the girl over to a couch and sat her down, going back to Roman.

He took a good long look at her and raised his eyebrow at Neo. "Now that you mention it, she looks like that girl you took a picture of yesterday. Think they're related?"

'I don't know. Has Hei contacted you yet with info?" She put her parasol away.

"Yeah, he called about an hour ago. The one you took a picture of goes by the name of Echo. Been living here in Vale for about six years, worked at a weapon workshop. Helped little Red stop me in that one Dust shop little over a month ago." He took a cigar out and lit it, slowly breathing out some smoke. "The White Fang was looking to recruit her for some time. That's about all he knows. We can also guess she's going to Beacon now, she hasn't been walking the streets as much as she did more than a month ago."

'So we ask the kid her name. Easy, she won't even think about it.' Neo and Roman turned to the couch to see that the kid was gone. 'Where did she go?'

"I don't fucking know, I was talking to you!" He grabbed the nearest Faunus by the collar of his uniform. "Where did the girl go?!"

"She went to the bathroom, just over there!" The terrified worker pointed at the bathroom door the lead to Roman's personal bathroom. When Roman let him go he scampered off to go work somewhere else in the hideout.

Roman stomped over to the bathroom and yanked the door open, immediately cut off from yelling when the girl in the bathroom screamed. "NO!" He shut it and walked back to Neo, who was laughing silently.

"She was, uh, on the toilet." He scowled at Neo who was still laughing. "Yeah, laugh it up. I have work to do." He went back to the table he had been at before. "Tell me when you get her name."

Neo nodded and waited outside the door. She heard the flush and the tap running. Then the tap cut off but the door didn't open. Three minutes later when the door opened, Neo grew suspicious. _"She should be out by now."_ She opened the door slightly, peeked inside and then she flung the door open when she saw what the girl was doing.

She was writing on the grey wall with Roman's hair dye. She looked up at Neo and smiled angelically. "Redrum!" And that is what she had written. She dropped the container and the rest of the hair dye spilled on the floor, looking like a pool of orange blood. "All done." She skipped out of the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

Neo would tell Roman about the dye later. 'Hey, what's your name? Mine is Neopolitan, but all my friends call me Neo.'

"Vi-o-let Ritz." She sounded out the parts of her first name.

Neo rocked back on her heels. 'Your sister is Abyss Ritz?'

"Yee. Ass-ass-in super good." She walked over to Roman and wiped her finger off on his coat, not completely getting the dye off her finger and smudging the dye into his coat.

"Oh come on! I just had this thing cleaned!" He looked down at the girl. "I will not hesitate to punt you."

"Redrum!" She pointed at the bathroom and Roman's eyes widened. He looked at her finger and realized that it was dyed orange, which meant that his coat now had orange dye in it. Which meant she had gotten into his hair dye.

"Stay here. I'll be back for you." He stormed over to the bathroom and slammed the door open. A tic appeared on his forehead as he looked at the pool of drying dye, the container laying on its side. He looked at the wall and saw the phrase written out. "What does that even mean?" He went over to the toilet, grabbing a roll of toilet paper to dry the wet dye before it seeped into the stone. His eyes caught the reflection of the wall and he dropped the paper.

"Murder." He spoke quietly.

0-0

Jaune was freaking out, again, but this time it was understandable. His team was currently looking for Echo during the lunch break, and having no luck. The last they had heard, she was with Team CFVY and Blake in the library. Anything after that they had no idea. She was probably hungry right now, and she wasn't in the mess hall with Team CFVY. Also, Team CFVY couldn't be found anywhere in the school, so Jaune had gone to Professor Goodwitch telling her the problem.

She messaged Team CFVY's leader and she hadn't responded at all. She told Jaune she would continue to try establishing contact with the missing team while he searched the school. He told Pyrrha about it and she roped Team RWBY into searching as well. Yang was searching the gardens with Blake and groaning in annoyance. "We should have just put a child leash on her or something. Ruby was never this bad."

"Ruby was also never in a school filled with hundreds of Hunters and Huntresses in training at that age. She probably didn't have that many places to go." Blake was actually helping search for Echo instead of reading her book. It was partially her fault that the bat Faunus was now missing as she hadn't told anybody about Team CFVY having Echo until they were already gone.

"Yeah, there's that. She also stuck to me like glue. She wasn't really social, if you couldn't tell. Echo seems to be the opposite, I guess. It's like she's trying to get away from us."

Yang brought up a good point. At first, she ran off while they were distracted, then she ran off to the bathroom. And Blake guessed that going with Team CFVY willingly was running off as well. "I guess." She spotted a pair of bunny ears poking up over a bush and nudged Yang. They snuck up on the unsuspecting Faunus.

"WHERE IS SHE!?" Yang roared, startling everyone hiding.

"We don't know!" Velvet was cowering behind Yatsuhashi and Coco had revved up her minigun.

Fox was on the ground sobbing. "I'm too young and beautiful to die!" Everyone just looked at him and he stopped sobbing, sitting straight up before dusting the stray bits of grass off himself. "What, I thought she was Goodwitch. Desperate times call for desperate measures."

"If you don't know where she is, then why are you hiding?" Yang's eyes had turned red at this point and she engaged Ember Celica, ready to pummel somebody.

"Goodwitch found out we had her, and we were shopping in Vale for outfits, and we got ice cream but then she disappeared and help us!" Velvet grabbed Yang's shoulders and shook her.

Blake smacked her forehead. "You get onto me for saying fuck in front of her and then you lose her in Vale! That's even worse!" She shook her head to dispel the anger. "Fine, we need to tell everybody to search Vale now that we know that she's there. That includes Professor Goodwitch."

Team CFVY shuddered but agreed. Everyone was told to get to Vale and search there, as CFVY had lost her in the city. CFVY was promised a month's worth of detention.

Tears were shed.

0-0

Violet was having a blast with Roman and Neo. At least, that's what Roman thought. But he was too scared of this girl to make sure. He wanted her as far away as possible after he had left the bathroom. He had told Neo to keep her occupied until he could call Abyss to pick her up, no doubt calling in the middle of a contract. The assassin had killed Hunters and Huntresses many times stronger than him, he did not want to take any chances with her sister, cute as she may be.

Neo watched as Violet ordered the White Fang grunts around like a true task master, one with only basic mastery of language. "Over there, blue Dust goes! No dillying! Work fast!" Neo felt a special bond with this tiny being, like they were destined to rule together over the tall people.

"What is this?" An acidic tone came from an open doorway. Cinder Fall, the lady Roman was now working for, stepped into the main building. "What is another child doing here?"

Neo pulled out her scroll again and typed out to her. 'She's the sister of Abyss. Found her roaming the streets after she followed me to tell me my hair was pretty.'

"The sister of Abyss Ritz? Well, that is surprising to hear. I thought she was an only child." She walked over to Violet, who had gone silent as soon as Cinder spoke up. "Hello there child. My name is Cinder Fall, but you may call me Miss fall. Or Mistress."

Violet just stared at her for a long moment before pointing at her hair. "You have pretty hair too. Can I touch?"

Cinder pondered it for a moment. "Fine you may for but a moment. I have work to do." She leaned forward and allowed Violet to grasp at a few strands of her hair.

Violet rubbed them between her fingers and then against her face. "Super soft. Super strong. Good garrote. Redrum."

Cinder pulled back, looking over at Neo skeptically. "What does she mean by 'Redrum'?"

Neo shrugged. 'Don't know. You should probably ask Roman. After she started saying that, he told her to get far away from him. Also, she messed with his hair dye in the bathroom.'

Cinder's face ticked. "Fine, but you are coming with me. I refuse to deal with that man alone. I fear my temper has gotten rather hard to control lately. I wouldn't want to destroy a pawn at this stage." She and Neo walked off, leaving Violet to sit atop some boxes and order the White Fang around some more. "Roman."

Roman froze for a second before turning around. "Nice to see you, Cinder. What can I do for your powerfulness on this fine and wonderful day?" He gave a mock bow while holding his cane.

Cinder snarled. "Enough of your quips and sarcasm. First, I want to know how the operation is going. What is the percentage of Dust?"

He motioned to the room they were in. "We currently have half of it. I'm currently planning another hit."

"Good. Secondly, what information do you have on the pest?"

Roman's mouth quirked to the side. "Name's Echo, lived in Vale for about six years, worked at a weapons workshop before going to Beacon. She was the other one at that Dust shop where you had to pull me from, other than Red. The White Fang tailed her for some time wanting to recruit her but stopped."

Cinder nodded. The information was good for now. "Find more. And the last thing I want to know, is why you are suddenly afraid of a little girl that said redrum?"

Roman pointed at the bathroom. "You want answers, look in the mirror. Watch the floor, it has dye all over it." He returned to the table, more looking over the map for posterity rather than planning anything at this point.

Cinder walked over to the bathroom and slowly opened the door. True to Roman's words, the floor had been nearly covered with an orange dye that was dry by this point. The word redrum had been painted on the wall in orange dye with the diameter of the little girl's index finger. She just shook her head in annoyance. She stepped in front of the mirror and looked into her reflection. Fiery eyes and a pale complexion offset by raven hair. Her fiery red dress was spotless, and she spotted no blemishes upon her face. _"I swear, if that half-wit is fooling with me…"_ She spotted the faint trace of an orange line in the reflection and squinted. She stepped out of the way of the mirror while still watching it. The writing on the wall flipped from 'redrum' to 'murder'.

She scoffed and stepped out of the bathroom. "Roman, are you telling me you're afraid of a little girl because she wrote 'murder' on your wall? That is low, especially for you."

He shook his head. "I'm more afraid of her sister and what she's going to do when she finally comes here to pick her up. Neo practically picked her up off the street out of nowhere! What if she thinks we kidnapped her or something and decides to sanction her own hit?"

Cinder flared her new power, a flame igniting in her hand. "Then I will simply get rid of her. A simple assassin is no match for me as I am now. Nor as I was before." She snuffed out the flame dramatically. "But perhaps we can use this opportunity in our favor, get in Abyss' good graces by returning her sister to her. She could get rid of the little bug we found and none would be the wiser."

He nodded his head. "You're right. Neo, go get the kid and make her comfortable. She's going to be a queen until her sister gets here."

Neo nodded and moved over to where Violet was. Only to find that the girl was gone. In her place was a note. 'Gotta go now, bye pretty lady, ice cream lady, and creepy orange haired guy!' A little smiley face was drawn next to the first two but a frowny face was drawn next to the last one. 'P.S. Namor.' She brought the note back to Roman and Cinder.

Roman's eyebrow twitched and he flipped the table. "How in all hells did she just walk out of here? We have guards at every entrance that would turn her back and everything!" He noticed a card floating down from the air and snatched it. 'Thanks for getting my sister. Abyss.' He crumpled the note up and tossed it into a trashcan nearby. "That answers the question. Her sister came and got her. I was standing her the entire time and she managed to slip a note onto the table without me ever fucking noticing."

Cinder's brow furled. "Roman, you're moving all this to another safe house. Today. Goodbye." She turned on her heel and walked quickly out.

Neo looked over at Roman and he looked at her. He looked like he was going to say something but she held her scroll up to his face. 'I'm not taste-testing **any** of your food.'

He moved off while grumbling. "Gods damnit."

0-0

Everyone was gathered at the pads. CFVY, RWBY, JNPR, and even Goodwitch. She was there mostly to supervise, but she also had to make sure that he student was safe. They were currently waiting on an air ship to come in. Yang's was tapping her foot impatiently while Blake was passing time reading her book. Ruby had joined Jaune in his pacing and they were pacing circles around the group. Everyone else was patiently waiting. An air ship was spotted and Goodwitch called out to the gathered students. "Alright, I want every one of you to have a partner and stay on your scrolls with us at all times. We need to find Miss Arc today, failure is not an option."

The bay door to the air ship opened and one passenger exited. Everyone stood stock still before Yang burst into laughter. "Seriously, we were gearing up for an epic montage scene and she just comes right back to us? This is gold!"

"Hair trigger." Yang stopped laughing and turned to Echo. "Bad puns."

"My puns are not bad! No puns are ever bad, they're the pinnacle of all humor!" She stepped up to the child. "And leave my hair out of this."

Goodwitch smacked her in the back of the head. "Miss Xiao Long, cease this behavior at once. And if you would think about it, she just told you a pun."

Yang thought the few words over before smiling. "Hey, she really did! I'm on a hair trigger about my hair trigger!" She held up her hand after kneeling down. "Give me five!"

Echo ignored her and walked over to Weiss. "Ups."

Weiss scowled at her. "No, I will not carry you."

Echo pouted and tears started to appear in her eyes. "No ups?" She started to sniffle and cry into her arms, dirtying her new shirt Coco bought her.

"Wow Weiss, even for you that's cold." Blake walked over to Echo and picked her up, tucking Echo's head under her chin. "See, it isn't that hard."

Echo grabbed at her shoulders, refusing to let go now that she had been picked up by someone. "Tired. Wanna sleep." She fell asleep being held by Blake.

Goodwitch looked at everyone and motioned to the classrooms. "Now that she is back you may all return to classes. I will see your team, Miss Adel, in my office after classes are over. Now move." She whipped her crop out and everyone started to move to classes. She also headed to the combat classroom, as it was combat class with the first years currently and she was not in the dueling room.

Team RWBY and Team JNPR changed into their combat attire, Blake putting Echo down on a bench in the changing rooms and picking her back up afterwards. They walked into the dueling room and sat down. By now, everyone had heard of the incident with Echo and they ignored the child in the room. Said child was asleep again, being cooed at by Nora and Ruby. Goodwitch stepped in seconds after they sat down.

"Due to unforeseen circumstances, class has been cut short today and there will be only two duels. Will Miss Nikos and Miss Belladonna come down." She stepped into her referee box as Blake handed Echo over to Yang. Blake and Pyrrha stepped into the ring and readied themselves. "Ready?" They both nodded. "Then begin!"

Jaune was busy watching the match, detailing the moves both fighters used inside his head. With the training he was going to get he would definitely be able to use some of them later on! Then he could totally beat Cardin and make his team proud! And himself, but you know, the team comes first. After a particularly nasty blow to Blake that brought her down to forty-five percent, he looked over to Yang and Echo to see that Echo was also watching the fight, even more intensely than he had.

"And the victor is Miss Nikos!" His attention was drawn back to the arena where Pyrrha was helping Blake back to her feet. "Both of you performed admirably. My only recommendations to you both are to continue your training. Next to fight, and the last bout of this session, will be Mister Lark and Miss Xiao Long."

Yang handed Echo back to Blake, who easily accepted the child before sitting down. Yang cracked her knuckles and jumped into the arena. Sky looked like he was going to pass out due to fright but he went into the arena anyways. It was an automatic fail for the day if you were called up and didn't fight. It was easy to tell who would win this fight. As soon as Goodwitch called for the match to begin, Yang was off like a bullet. She smashed into Sky and sent him flying out of the ring.

"Miss Xiao Long is the winner. That tactic might work for slower opponents, Miss Xiao Long, but against faster opponents it would spell your absolute defeat. Please do not rush headfirst into a fight like that again. And Mister Lark, please be faster. That is all for this class, you are now dismissed." She went walking out of the doors, leaving the students to change and head off to their next classes a few minutes early.

"Hey Weiss, can you look after Echo while we're in Peach's class? We're supposed to be going over some graphic stuff today, and I don't think she should have to see that." Yang had just gotten her blazer on and buttoned it up. She had to play wrestle her ribbon away from the child.

"Fine, but it's only because I know Pyrrha and Ren will be doing training. Hand her over."

Instead of waiting for Yang to pick her up and carry her over to Weiss, Echo jumped off the bench she had been put on and walked over to Weiss calmly. "I walk on my own. No carry now."

Ruby kneeled down in front of her and rubbed her cheek. "Wow, look at her! She's growing up so fast."

Echo stared Ruby deep in her eyes and just quietly said, "Don't patronize me, woman."

Ruby, Weiss and Blake froze. "What, what did she say?" Yang looked to Weiss and Ruby, unaware that her partner had also heard what Echo said.

"He-he, nothing Yang. She just, got something stuck in her teeth and was getting it out. He-he." Ruby stepped backwards to hide behind her sister. "Let's get going, don't want to be late." She grabbed her sister by the arm and dragged her out of the room. Blake looked from Weiss and Echo to the retreating form of Ruby and Yang before quietly following after them.

Echo started out, and Weiss shook herself out of her stupor to follow her. She was making a path back to the dorms, and it was surprising Weiss at how well she knew the campus. She even took a few shortcuts that Weiss didn't know about. Like, there was a janitor's closet that opened up with two doors that cut off a whole minute of walking. Echo stopped outside of Team RWBY's door and turned to Weiss, waiting for her to open the door. She swiped her scroll against the sensor and opened the door, letting Echo in.

"So, what is it that little Arcs do in their off time? It can't be anything like I did while I was young." She walked over to the desk where her project was sitting. She still hadn't found a partner to work on it with, but she had gotten started nonetheless. It would pay to not procrastinate. She was brought out of her thoughts when Echo jumped up onto her bed and scrabbled against the covers to get herself all the way up.

When Echo got all the way onto the bed she just sat there quietly, staring intensely at Weiss. It was rather unsettling to watch her, so she focused back on the project. Due to the recent run in with the Grimm, she decided to base the project on Arachne. Her partner refused to even look at the desk after she learned what Weiss was working on, since she hated spiders. Ruby had said that she would have just closed her eyes and started swinging if she had run into any during the trip. "Redrum."

Her head whipped back over to Echo, who was still just staring at her. It was like she didn't even blink. "What did you say?"

"Bathroom." She dropped off the bed and walked over to the bathroom door, jumping up slightly to turn the knob. After walking in and shutting the door, she went quiet.

"That was… odd." She pulled out the book on Grimm she had gotten from the library and opened to the index. After finding the page numbers for Arachne, she flipped to those and started to read. "Despite field research conducted, it is still unknown whether Arachne are formed like any other Grimm species or whether they are spawned from the Arachne Queen like a regular spider. Researchers and Hunters have not been able to safely watch the spawning process because of the scarcity of the Queen in open areas." The toilet flushed and she looked up to the door. The tap ran for a few seconds before shutting off.

Weiss waited. She had learned from earlier not to let the young girl out of her sight for too long, she was extremely slippery. She frowned when she heard the scraping of something against the floor. A minute later, the scraping sounded again and just a few minutes after the door opened, Echo coming out and shutting the door. "All done." She walked back over to the bed and once more scrabbled to sit atop it. "What you doin'?"

"I am working on a project for Grimm studies. I decided to work on the Arachne species." She lifted the book and showed it to Echo, the image of a basic Arachne on the page.

She didn't visibly respond; her face was void of emotions. "Weak. Spiders are easy. Do Geist."

Weiss froze. After swallowing some saliva that collected in her mouth she reached up to touch her scar. She had gotten it during the fight with a suit of armor, possessed by three Geist. She knew about them, ever since Winter told her what her Father's challenge would be. She trained to counter them, their strengths and weaknesses well known. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Echo. "Why them specifically? Why not something like a Beringel?"

"You know. Spooky. Suit. Sword. Challenging. Broken." She was saying a word at a time, but her eyes got harder with each word. Weiss started to breathe harder, the room closing in on her. "Scarring. Jacques. Father. Isolation. Proven." Her vision was getting cloudy, as she struggled to breathe. How did she know? What was happening? The last thing she heard was what she thought Echo had said earlier. "Redrum."

Weiss fainted, falling out of her chair to the carpet.

0-0

Ozpin was rather bored at the moment. He had just beaten the computer at another game of chess. The hundredth win he had today. He decided to flip through the security cameras to see if anything exciting was going on. "Let us see… Bart's class is fine. Peter still puts his students to sleep. Perhaps I should tell him to actually teach? No, let him continue on. He'll learn in a few years." He flipped through the hallway cameras and got to the cameras outside before he spotted a dark spot dart around a corner. "Hmm, what is this?"

He switched to the camera around the corner and saw that it was just Miss Arc, out for a walk. His eyes narrowed. Where is the person watching her? He got a few more views on the girl and saw that she was walking by herself. And she was heading in a roundabout way to the elevator, looking around every once and awhile. Her ears twitched cutely, he normally didn't see them because of her choice in headwear. But he couldn't fault her, civilians trusted a Huntsman or Huntress more if they appeared to be human. He would have to see about getting himself a remodeled version of the device, enhanced hearing would be a great weapon in his arsenal.

She was approaching the elevator now. She stood on her toes and pressed the button. A few seconds later, the doors opened and she stepped into the machine, still alone. He switched cameras again to see the inside of the elevator. She was looking straight into the camera. She looked down to the buttons and pressed the button that released the passcode panel. She input the code to go all the way down and the feed cut off. It was a design they put into the system for security reasons.

He spent no time waiting around before going to his personal elevator. It was express, from the top of Beacon tower to the basement. A few seconds of intense pressure, negated by aura, and he was in the basement. Echo was nowhere in sight, so he got to searching for her. Perhaps they should have closed circuit monitoring hardware down here for cases like this. On the off chance something like this ever did happen again, however unlikely it may be.

He went to the few interrogation rooms and cells first, not finding there he moved on to the vault. She wasn't there and it was still secure. She could just be wandering the halls aimlessly, but he would hear that. Sound travelled extremely well down here… she probably could dampen her sound to the point where humans couldn't hear it due to her hearing abilities. But she was just a young girl… but that didn't explain how she got down here with a code only she knew as a sixteen-year-old.

He found her standing in front of Amber's pod, just staring. She didn't make any indication that she heard him approach. "Echo, you shouldn't be down here. What would your brother think if he found out you were missing again?"

Without looking away from the pod she responded. "I would believe he would begin to worry, just as he most likely did the other times I went off without him or someone else." Ozpin nearly dropped his mug. "It is rather difficult to play innocent for so long, I just had to have some fun here and there. By the way, Weiss was unconscious the last time I saw her. The info dump was too much for her."

"Miss Arc, is it possible that you didn't fully revert?" It was never documented with this Dust, but it wasn't impossible. Much more difficult things to explain are real, so why not that?

"Yep, it was all an act. It reminds me of a quote. 'Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak.'" She looked him in the eyes, the childish light gone from them. "I'm the ultimate spy."

 **A.N. #2- Uh, classes are now in session for the semester. Just to let you all know. Ciao!**


	13. Chapter 12- Third Family

**Reviewer Acknowledgements**

 **Jack Redhawke- I understand, neither have I. This chapter was mainly just for the giggles. Also, I doubt that any of the people Echo encountered during the time in younger form spend much time around young children to begin with.**

 **C0de- Wow, that's a lot to respond to. Sneaky sneaky, thank you very much, Roman def had it coming (Weiss didn't really), and to you and Redhawke remember that Echo was also a prodigy child and asked for books at the age of** **one.** **And I will not stress about the shipping, it will be minimal because I do not have tons of experience in writing it.**

"How is this possible? And why do you think that?" Ozpin said, looking into his coffee. It was as if he was looking for answers in the dark liquid.

"Well." I sat down on the cold floor. "It could do with my soul I guess. And for the second, I got into and out of Roman's base of operations, or at least one of them. Completely unscathed and they don't suspect a thing."

"Your soul?" He took a deep breath before downing his entire mug. "What are you telling me? That your intrinsically different from all of us in some way?"

I waved my hand in a so-so manner. "Kind of. I mean, you're the closest person I know of that can do what I did. At least, as far as I know of."

His eyes narrow. "You did what I can do? Elaborate."

I placed a hand on my tiny chest. "My soul is not the original from this body. I died and entered this body, but the original soul had already been taken. Therefore, I took control with all my memories of my previous life. I'm looking to return the original soul to this body, maybe. If it's even possible at this point."

He puts both hands on the cane, holding onto the mug with only his pinky. "This is… shocking. Who were you before? And how did you die?"

I chuckle. "You wouldn't know me from before. Heck, you wouldn't even find me in any database or records. I died from blood loss I believe, a knife to the back and lung. That's all I remember about that. And it wasn't on Remnant."

The mug dropped, the handle cracking off upon impact. "Not from Remnant? Are you being entirely truthful here, Miss Arc? Are you sure that you are not from Remnant?"

I nod. "Yes, I am sure. I used to live on this little rock called Earth! Or Terra if you want to be a weirdo. Third planet from the giant ball of burning gasses called the sun. Home to over seven point four billion humans."

"Seven point four… billion? But what of the Grimm? How did you populate a world to that amount?"

"There were no Grimm." I stood up and shook my head. "There were no Faunus either, just Humans. But make no mistake, there was still racism and fighting. It wasn't some sort of paradise. We had two world wars, the first taking about thirty-seven million lives and the second taking close to eighty million. About six million of those deaths were Jewish, a set of people who practiced a certain religion and were killed mainly as a scapegoat. A dictator named Adolf Hitler cited them as the source of many problems his country was facing. That was called the Holocaust."

Ozpin stood there, shaking slightly. Even in all the years he had lived facing against Grimm and the enemies of the kingdoms, he had never heard or seen this amount of disregard for human life. "Did you die in a war? Who else knows about this?"

I popped my mouth once. "My adopted mother and father know about my previous life, but not about the wars and such things. And no, I didn't die during a war. I was in my home and robbers came in. I fought them and got a knife as a reward after subduing them. But now that you know all this, we need to talk about what I found."

He took a deep breath to steady himself. "You are right. There's no use dwelling on the past when we need to look at the future. What information have you gathered?"

"As I said before, I infiltrated one of Roman's hideouts. The White Fang is working with him under the command of Cinder Fall, who convinced the White Fang to join her cause when Adam was still alive. I'm now on their radar as Echo, they don't know my last name somehow. In this body I'm Violet Ritz, the sister of Abyss Ritz, who is also me."

A glint of anger entered his eyes. "You're Abyss, the assassin who has killed over thirty Huntsmen and Huntresses. Why would you tell me this, when you are trying to help us?"

"Because I didn't actually kill any of them." He looked incredulous. "They died of natural causes, surprisingly enough. I just took credit of killing them to strengthen my guise as a killer. Abyss is known to use lethal poisons that work through aura protection and are untraceable in any amount. When have you even heard of such a poison that's real?"

"Never, there is no such thing. But they wouldn't know that, since they don't have access to the same information that we do. Very clever, Miss Arc. Why tell me all this now, why didn't you tell me before?"

I shrugged. "A whim, I guess. Most of what I do is on a whim. I'm probably more spontaneous than most students here." He made to ask a question but I shook my head. "Not more than Yang. That would be difficult. I should probably get back to the dorm rooms before they completely freak out. See ya again in a week." I left him standing there as I got back into the elevator, pressing the button to go to ground level.

0-0

"Weiss!" Weiss was being shaken, and she did not like that at all. She liked being yelled at even less. "Weiss, wake up and tell us where Echo is!"

"Xiao Long, if you do not unhand me right now, I will run you through with Myrtenaster." Yang dropped her and she grunted as she hit the floor. "I would have preferred it if you put me down instead of dropping me, thank you very much." She got up and dusted herself off.

Yang flipped her hair. "Yes, you're welcome. NOW WHERE IS ECHO!?"

Weiss huffed. "I have no clue where she is. All I know is that she…" Weiss took a glance around the room to see that both Team RWBY and Team JNPR were present. "Jaune, how smart is your sister and how much does she know about me?"

Jaune raised an eyebrow and scratched at the back of his head. "Uhh, she graduated high school at seven? And I have no clue how much she knows about you, Weiss. She never really said anything about knowing you before Beacon."

Weiss' eye twitched. "She graduated… at the age of seven? I don't… How is that even…?"

Ruby looked over to Jaune. "Holy smokes, Jaune, your sister is super smart! I have trouble passing those tests even now!"

Jaune looked down at his feet. "Yeah… she's really smart. And why did you ask about her knowing you? Did she say something?"

Weiss snapped. "Yes, she did! She knew something that only my family should know! She looked me in the eyes and started to say classified information like it was everyday knowledge! There's something wrong with her!"

Ruby put her hands on Weiss' shoulders. "Calm down Weiss. We aren't going to get anywhere in finding her if we're angry. How about you freshen up in the bathroom and we can talk about how we're going to find her again after."

Weiss took a few deep breaths before patting herself down, smoothing any wrinkles in her uniform. "You're right, I should just calm down. I will be done shortly and then we can find that hellion." She walked into the bathroom and had to suppress a growl. "She used someone's makeup to write on the wall- no, calm down. We can clean that later." She turned around towards the mirror and froze.

"Hey Weiss, you all good? You've been in there for a while." Ruby knocked on the door. When Weiss didn't respond, the door opened just a crack. "Weiss?" The door opened the rest of the way and Ruby walked in. She waved her hand in front of Weiss' twitching face. "Huh, weird." She looked at the wall and frowned. "Well darn, that's going to have to be washed. Redrum? What's that even supposed to mean?"

Weiss grabbed Ruby's chin and pointed her face towards the mirror. "That." Ruby paled. "We need to find Echo now." Weiss pulled Ruby from the bathroom and rushed out the door, leaving everybody else wondering what had gotten her so motivated.

0-0-0

"~Baa baa black sheep have you any soul? No sir, by the way, what the hell are morals~?" I was bouncing my way down some empty halls back to the dorms. Classes were about to switch, or they already did? Don't really care at this point. I nearly ran into Weiss and Ruby as they burst around a corner. "White!"

Weiss let go of Ruby's arm and Ruby went careening into a nearby wall face first. "Ow, Weiss! Why did you stop so fast?" She rubbed at her face and then she spotted me. "Echo! Where were you, we were so worried!"

I tilted my head and shrugged. "Dunno, everywhere and nowhere. You were funny. Do it again!" I jumped on the spot and clapped my hands.

"I am not going to run into a wall just because it was funny! We don't cause pain just to get a laugh, it's rude and not right." Ruby waved her finger in a chastising manner. "We also don't waste perfectly good makeup vandalizing bathroom walls. Especially with such bad words."

"Redrum? It's not bad, it's a fun word! A birdie told me it!" I flapped my arms and cawed. "He smelled weird though. Like that stuff they rub on your arm before a shot." I shuddered, not faking the reaction. I hated getting shots, they sucked.

"How did you know about the knight?" We both looked over to Weiss. She was staring at me. "How did you know about my test? My father?"

I pouted. "Don't know what you're talking about. I wanna eat. Can I have cookies?" I looked up at Ruby.

Weiss grabbed my arm, hard. "You will tell me, you insufferable little-!"

The grip was gone as fast as it had come, with Ruby gripping Weiss' arm. "Weiss, don't tell me you were going to hurt her to get answers? For shame."

Weiss swallowed and pulled her hand away. "I… I'm sorry about that. Could you forgive me Echo?"

I tapped my foot and rubbed at my chin. After a few seconds, I looked at her and gave her a smile. "Sure!" I motioned for her to come down so I could whisper in her ear. She did so and I cupped my hand around it so Ruby couldn't hear. "But if you ever grab me again, they'll ever find the body."

She recoiled and hid behind Ruby. "Now that we're all friends again, let's go get us some cookies!" Ruby led us down the hall. "What kind of cookies do you like the most, Echo? Mine are double chocolate chip."

"I like oatmeal raisin!" Ruby just looked down at me like I was Satan. "Super nice."

"I can't believe the blasphemy that lives across the hall from me. How could Jaune ever let his sister develop a taste for that demon food?" She was whispering it under her breath, but I still caught it.

"Why do you talk like White when you get angry?" I grabbed onto the hem of her skirt. Weiss was still hiding on the other side of her.

"I totally don't, you're just hearing things." She gave me a small fake smile and a chuckle that sounded extremely forced. "Jaune will be happy. This is the fastest we found you. We didn't even have to search for five minutes!"

We entered the common room kitchen and Ruby got to making the cookies. She left me and Weiss behind in the area with the couch and the television. She was looking over to the kitchen and back to me with darting eyes. Before she had the chance to move, the rest of the teams came in. "Hey, there you all are. We were beginning to think that you went off your rocker, Ice Queen." Yang patted Weiss on the back. "What's up with you? It's like you've seen a ghost."

"I'm just fine, Yang. Never better. Jaune, may I talk with you in private for a moment?" She didn't wait for an answer before she dragged him over to a corner. "There is something extremely wrong with your sister right now. She just threatened-"

I cut her off by darting over to her. "What are you talking to bro about?" I gave her that tiny smile that promised I knew what she was about to say.

"Well, um, I was just going to tell him that you liked oatmeal raisin cookies! Yes, just that and nothing else! I'm going to help Ruby." She quickly and stiffly walked over to the kitchen.

"That was… something? Hey there Echo, where were you earlier. We were worried." Jaune had kneeled down to look me in the face.

"I was talking to the old man. Sorry for worrying you." I looked down at my feet and kicked them in a bashful manner.

He brought me into a hug. "Hey, don't worry. Just, don't do it again please. We don't want to lose you." He then picked me up and started to tickle me. "If you do again, then the tickle monster will get you and I won't be around to stop it."

I giggled and smacked at his hands. "No! No tickle monster! Stop it!" He stopped and brought me over to the couch. "I wanna watch movie!"

They all laugh at that. They all then have fun trying to pick out a movie that would entertain me as a three-year-old. They were having trouble until Jaune just finally gave them a hint and said some sort of documentary. They picked a nature documentary, mainly because one of the portions was about sloths, and Nora demanded that we watch that one. Thirty minutes into the movie, Ruby came out with the cookies and joined us. With a stomach full of cookies and surrounded by warm people, I started to drift off.

This was definitely something I wanted to remember.

0-0

Jaune felt a nudge on his arm and looked over to his partner. She leaned over and whispered to him. "Echo fell asleep a while ago, just in case you didn't notice. We should probably tuck her in for the night."

Jaune looked down to see that Pyrrha was correct, Echo had fallen asleep at some point during the film. Jaune carefully got up from his seat, making sure not to jostle her too much. "Could you get the door for me? I don't want to pull out my scroll and risk waking her up."

Pyrrha got up as well and nodded. They went to the dorm room and Pyrrha unlocked the door, holding it open for Jaune before walking in and closing it behind herself. Jaune put Echo down on her futon and covered her in her blankets. She snuggled further into them and made a happy sighing sound. Jaune stood there for a moment before reaching down and smoothing out her hair. "Sweet dreams sis."

Pyrrha watched him with a small smile on her face. She wondered if her leader was like this with all kids, or just his sister. He would make a good father someday. "So, Jaune, when did you get so good with kids?"

He looked over to her and moved away from Echo, sitting on his bed and ushering Pyrrha to do the same. She took a seat beside him. "I don't really know. I guess it all started when I was told to watch over Lily. She's Echo's age, but she actually needed to be watched. Then, I started to babysit around Ansel. It's actually how I got enough money for the transcripts, funnily enough."

Pyrrha just rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything about it. "So, you said that Echo has a sister her age. What about the rest of your family?"

Jaune leaned back slightly and rubbed at the back of his head. "Well, my dad's a Huntsman in Ansel. He doesn't really go out on missions all that often, mostly just guards the wall. My mom isn't a Huntress, but if you met her when she's angry you would swear she is." That made Pyrrha chuckle, imagining a woman that looked like Jaune tearing through Grimm in a rage. "Then, besides Echo and Lily, I have six other sisters."

Pyrrha froze for a moment in shock. "Six sisters? So you have eight in total? Just, how…?"

Jaune laughed nervously. "Um, my parents were… active to say the least. There's Fleur, Acacia, Bluebell, Camellia, Clover, and Dahlia." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a picture from his wallet. It was of his entire family, with Echo and Lily being in the forefront. He pointed at each one as he went over their names again. "Just a few years ago, Clover started to dye her hair green and Camellia started to dye hers blue. They were tired of being mistaken for each other. They also opened a detective agency that hasn't shut down yet. They want to get enough money to move shop to Vale, get more customers."

Pyrrha looked at the twins. It was difficult to tell them apart, and she almost asked Jaune to tell her which was which again before she stopped herself. "How old were you when this was taken?"

He looked at the photo, at himself. "I was eight, almost nine. This was right before we got back into school. My birthday was a week after, and Echo got me something pretty cool! A weapon repair guide and kit. I still don't see how she did it, but I'm not really complaining."

"How old was Echo then?" Pyrrha pulled the picture back over to her to look at Echo. The girl looked cute still, with her bat ears in full display. A small smile was on her face, one that Pyrrha thought looked oddly similar to her own smile she plastered on when dealing with the press. "She doesn't really look all that happy in this photo."

Jaune laughed quietly. "Yeah, for some reason she just doesn't like being in pictures. Especially ones that she didn't know were being taken in the first place. And I swear she has a seventh sense for when something like that happens. She just whips around, it's hilarious. And she was six then, her birthday was still two months away."

Pyrrha did the math in her head. "So, that means her birthday is next month?"

Jaune nodded and looked back over to his sister. She had taken one of her pillows and started hugging it like a teddy bear. Jaune pointed it out to Pyrrha and she just had to take a picture of it. As soon as the picture was taken, Echo, still asleep, threw the other pillow on the futon at Pyrrha and Jaune. "See what I mean? And yeah, her birthday is on the seventeenth, same as Lily. She probably hasn't actually celebrated a birthday in all the time she's been here in Vale, she never really seemed to be the type to do that by herself."

Pyrrha gasped. "Six years without a birthday, we're going to have to rectify that." She then held her hand up to her mouth and attempted to stifle a yawn. "Oh dear, it seems that today's excitement tired me out more than I thought." She got up and went to get changed into her sleepwear, texting Ren and Nora that she and Jaune would not be coming back down. "We should probably also head to bed early."

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, we still have six days of this. Hopefully she got it out of her system today." He got up and stretched his arms, letting out a large yawn of his own. "What could go wrong?"

0-0

Everything.

Everything went wrong.

Yang currently had People Like Grapes grape soda in her hair, Weiss was still cowering behind Ruby, who was trying to tell Echo that chocolate chip cookies were better than oatmeal raisin. Blake was… somewhere. Ren and Nora were sent out to find her over an hour ago and still hadn't returned. Jaune was holding his head in his hands, wondering how everything got to be like this in under three hours since Echo woke up.

Professor Port's class had been cancelled due to a rampaging Ursa Minor. It would probably be the rest of the week until it came to meet again, they had to replace all the desks. When Professor Goodwitch asked him how the thing escaped without him even being in there, he just shrugged and told her the truth. The lock had been smashed by someone, with their bare hands. Yang had joked that someone probably did it with their _bear hands_ , and that was when Echo threw soda into Yang's hair.

Pyrrha looked over to see Echo was tuning Ruby out. She just had this weirdly blank stare going on, looking over Ruby's shoulder to some point on the ceiling or wall. "… and don't get me started on how much cinnamon is just something waiting to trigger someone's allergies. The stuff is also likely to burn a hole straight through your darn tongue, those Red Hot things are horrible!"

Echo perked up all of a sudden. "Bunny!" She darted off and rammed into Velvet's legs, giving her a firm hug. "How you be?"

Velvet picked Echo up and spun her around. "I've been doing well. How about you, how has your day been?"

As soon as Echo was back on the floor she held up both hands in the air. "Exciting! Much happened." She made clawing motions with her hands. "Big bear crushed things, and then Yellow made bad joke. She got purpled. Red is telling me lies. Oatmeal raisin is much better than chocolate chip."

The entirety of Team CFVY looked over to Ruby, hoping for some sort of confirmation. She just nodded and they laughed. "That does sound exciting, but maybe you shouldn't cause such troubles or praise them."

Echo pouted. "Didn't cause them. Just happened."

Coco raised an eyebrow. "You're telling me an Ursa was loose on its own in the school without a teacher knowing about it for long enough to wreck a classroom? And not be seen otherwise?"

Echo looked from side to side, not looking at Coco. "Yes…?"

Behind her sunglasses, Coco's eyes narrowed. "Was that a question or an answer?"

Echo just nodded and went back to her team, sitting in Jaune's lap. "Yes."

Coco just looked off to the side and whispered. "Smartass."

"Ass?" Echo… well, echoed.

"Gods damnit Coco!" Yang yelled.

"Damnit?" Just in case anybody else decided to curse in front of her, Jaune decided to cover her ears. He gave both Coco and Yang pointed looks, and they had the decency to look somewhat sheepish.

Weiss rubbed at the bridge of her nose. "Now that everybody's here, let's talk about how we're going to keep Echo out of trouble for the rest of the time she's like this."

Team CFVY and JNPR looked at her. Ren was the one who spoke up. "I thought you didn't want anything to do with her."

Weiss nodded, almost frantically. "Exactly. I do not want anything to do with that child. Your team will keep her occupied and such while my team stays as far away from her as possible."

"But Weiss!" Ruby looked at her partner. "Why do you not like her? She's so adorable!" She pointed over to Echo, who was now doing puppy dog eyes at them.

Weiss' eyes narrowed. "I do not care what any of you say, that child is a demon in disguise. It might even be a Grimm Changeling. We might never know."

Yang laughed. "Wow, that was a good one Weiss. You look like you even believe your own joke."

Weiss just scoffed. "It was no joke, Xiao Long. There's something wrong with her, but you're all too naïve to see it." She pointed at her eyes and then to Echo. "I'm watching you."

Everybody at the table exchanged glances. "Right… Well, since Weiss refuses to watch her, then it's just up to us." Jaune looked at the rest of his team. "Since Nora and I don't have class until after lunch, we can watch her until then. And after combat class Ren and Pyrrha can watch over her until history. I think there are a few more documentaries that we haven't watched yet, so those should tide over some time. After those run out, there's probably cartoons going on."

Nora groaned. "But I don't wanna sit there and watch stuff. I wanna go and break things! You know I can't not break things, Fearless Leader, it's what I do!" And just to prove her point, she smashed her tray against the table, cracking the wood.

Jaune sighed. "Fine, Nora, we can do some training or something. But I'm going to have to sit out to keep an eye on her." He pointed down to his lap before noticing the void where his sister once sat. He frantically looked around and spotted her standing next to Cardin and his heart dropped. "Oh no…"

She grabbed at Cardin's pant leg and he looked down at her. Jaune couldn't breathe, he was stuck in his seat. But Cardin did something he did not expect. Instead of yelling at her or hurting her in any way, he smiled down at her and ruffled her hair. And she allowed him to. She didn't let just anyone do that, she had to trust them. A whole lot. Then, she hopped up to sit next to him and began telling him some sort of story. She held her arms out wide, indicating the size of something or an amount. Cardin laughed, and motioned for her to go on.

"Holy crap." It sounded like Yang couldn't believe it either. "Is the world ending or something? Did I not get the message that we're all being replaced by aliens." Her eyes widened as she turned to Weiss. "Oh no, you were right! They got to Cardin too! There's no other explanation as to why he changed this fast."

Velvet was stunned to silence. Here was her previous bully, being nice to a Faunus. He was even listening to her story with no amount of annoyance on his face. If anything, it looked like he was enjoying the experience. She held her hands out and pointed at him, looking at her team, and then looking at him again. They all shook their heads. They didn't really know what was going on either.

Just then, Professor Goodwitch strolled into the room. "Where is Miss Arc? The cure came in early." Jaune just pointed over to where Echo was sitting. Goodwitch's eyebrow raised by a millimeter. She knew of Cardin's bullying, of course, but this was odd. "Miss Arc."

Echo turned around and smiled. "Yaay! Goodwizzle!" Everybody held in a laugh, not wanting to incite the rage of Goodwitch.

Her eye twitched. "Come with me young lady." She turned around and stalked out of the room.

"Bye everyone!" Echo waved and bounced off after Goodwitch. The doors closed as soon as she left.

"That's good. Now we don't have to watch over her anymore." Jaune smiled.

Weiss paled even further. Seemingly impossible, I know, but it happened. "She's going to be able to walk around normally. Oh no."

0-0-0

The cure? Yeah, it was a bubble bath made with special Dust. It was actually pretty nice, smelled like pomegranates and grapefruit. As soon as I was back to my normal size, I was given a uniform and basic underwear to change into. "So uhh… why did I wake up in a tub with you in the room Miss Goodwitch?" She had been the only other one in the room and I was playing off like I didn't know what was going on before.

She huffed. "Needless to say, Miss Valkyrie caused an accident. You were transformed into a younger state of being and were like that for all of yesterday and part of today. You were a problem child. Please make sure nothing like this ever happens again." With that said, she left.

Since I was now dressed, I made my way back to the dorm room. It was time for me to be in class, but I didn't have my books or anything. I also didn't have my scroll, so I had to hope that Jaune at least was in the room. I knocked on the door and waited. The sound of feet hitting the carpet sounded in the room and the door opened moments later. Jaune was standing there with a comic book in hand. "Echo! Back to normal."

"Yeah, back to normal and late for class. I'm just popping in to get my books." I passed by him and went to grab my books. Just when I bent down to get them, the clasp of the bra I was wearing caught against the fabric of my shirt. "Actually, I should also change out of this uncomfortable ass underwear and get my spats." I walked over to my drawers and grabbed a sports bra and panties, along with my spats. My scroll was on top of the drawers and I grabbed that as well before heading into the bathroom to get changed. "Where's Nora?"

"She's in the training halls. She wanted to smash things and didn't want to wait until combat classes." He went back to his bed and plopped down on it, the rustling of pages signifying that he started to read again.

I came out, putting the stuff away. "Cool. See ya later." I grabbed my bag and headed on to class. Peach was never in class, but it didn't hurt to go anyways. It would hurt my image of being a good student if I didn't go to class today.

I got to class without fanfare, sitting next to Weiss. She scooted away slightly and I looked to Pyrrha for an explanation. "You said something to her yesterday and she's afraid of you for some reason. She believes you to be some sort of evil creature."

I snorted. "Yes, I am secretly Cthulhu. Fear my eldritch abomination ways." When they didn't seem to get the joke, I smacked myself in the forehead. "Right, you guys wouldn't get that. Let's just get this assignment done with." We were tasked with creating a vial of heavy burn Dust. It's like concentrated fire dust, so it was even more volatile than normal. There were already a few burn marks on the tables. Luckily for me, I already had plenty of experience with the stuff.

I finished up with my vial and placed it on Peach's desk, returning to my seat to read through what we were most likely going to be doing tomorrow. We were making steady progress through the medical book. Class ended with a few more explosions, burnt hairs, and property damage. I headed back to the room and picked up my headphones before going to the mess hall and getting a heavy lunch. I immediately began to dig in once I had sat down.

"Slow down there. You're going to choke if you eat so fast." Yang snatched the tray away from me.

I snatched it right back. "No, I will not. I ensure that I chew properly before swallowing."

She scowled. "Why so snippy today? You just got back to being normal after being babied by Nora."

Nora snorted out a laugh. "Being babied. She totally wasn't a baby, Yang. She was like three or something. If she was a baby she would have been way easier to take care of." She was currently devouring a stack of pancakes. No idea why they're still serving those at lunch time.

Ren breathed in through his nose audibly and his pupils dilated somewhat. I stopped and put my fork and knife down. "It's time, isn't it?" His quiet voice carried through the group.

"Was that the first time Ren spoke up without someone talking to him first?" Blake queried from behind her book, her eyes peering up over the top.

"Yes and yes." I stopped eating and pushed back from the table. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go back to the dorm for something." I got up and left the room, hurrying to the dorm room.

0-0

They watched as Echo left, a visible hurry in her stride. They turned to Ren. "And what was she talking about and how did you know about it?" Yang was once again the one who asked first.

Ren licked his lips before he answered. "She told me that she would tell me when this week was upon us, but she never got the chance to because Nora threw the Dust crystal at her."

Jaune caught on to what Ren said immediately. He paled before shaking like a leaf. "No."

Ren nodded in understanding and placed a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Yes, Jaune, it is that feared week. Let us survive."

Ruby looked between the two men. "I don't understand, what's going on that has you two so scared. It isn't like she's going to go on a murderous rampage or something."

Jaune looked over at Ruby before placing his hands on her shoulders as he looked into her eyes to further the importance of his message. "Ruby, my dad and I always left the house when it got to this point. It was our official man time, but Echo came along with us before she left out to live in Vale. It was a necessity in the Arc household. It got worse when all of my sisters were of age. I don't know how bad Echo has it, but as even an adopted Arc it will be some level of Hell."

Ruby still didn't get it but Blake did. "Jaune, it can't be that bad. Just don't get on her bad side and you should be just fine."

It then clicked with everyone else what was going on. The females at the table that hadn't thought of it before had to hold in laughter. Jaune Arc and Lie Ren were being overly dramatic for something this minor in life. "Come on Renny, it totally can't be as bad as Jaune-Jaune is saying it is. I'm never that bad, even if the urge to smash people's legs increases four-fold and my craving for pancakes in insatiable."

"Nora." There was an underlying edge in Ren's tone. "She told me specifically that she would tell me when her time was so that I could avoid her. It wasn't said but it was understood. If you feel safe with her, that is your decision."

The utter look of shock on Nora's face showed how serious Ren had just been. He wouldn't say something like that unless he really meant it. "We're going to die, aren't we." Jaune whimpered.

Ruby's hands slammed down on the table. "Theirs is no way we're going to just let you die Jaune!" The area around them became quiet and she chuckled awkwardly before putting her hands down in her lap and shrinking down on herself. The noise around them started back up again and she put her hands back on the table, quietly this time. "I am not going to let my first friend at Beacon just die."

Ren raised an eyebrow and cleared his throat. "I'm not going to let you die either, Renny!" Nora hugged the boy to her side.

"Exactly, Nora, we just have to make sure that she's happy and then none of us will be hurt and then everyone will be happy!" Ruby beamed at her plan, her extremely simplistic plan. "Jaune, what kinds of sweets does she like?"

He scrunched up his face and tried to think about it. "She really likes coffee and chocolate, so some sort of chocolate coffee cake? Um, there's also any type of orange candy. And oranges." Ruby nodded she wrote this down on a notebook she had pulled from… somewhere? She might just carry it in her pocket or something since she's a team leader.

"Okay, so after classes today, someone will stay back and distract her so that the rest of us can head into Vale and get the stuff. Who volunteers?" She looked around the table and saw that nobody was holding up their hands. "Oh come on guys! Someone?" They just shook their heads and she sighed. "Fine then." She let the silence between them go on for a few seconds before putting her hand on the table. "Not it!"

Weiss was a second after her. One by one, people placed their hands on the table and Blake was the last one since she had to mark her place in her book. She clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Looks like Blakey here is volunteering to do it! This is why I love you partner, always looking out for the good of the team!" "Yang slammed a hand on her shoulder.

Blake looked over at her yellow themed partner. "Yes, for the good of the team." She said through gritted teeth.

Ruby smiled at her. "Well, since this is all cleared up now, we should head off to combat class! We don't want to be late for it!" She speedily cleaned up her space and bolted out the doors. Everyone else followed shortly after with Blake bringing up the rear. She groaned when she realized what spending one on one time with Echo meant.

It meant that she would be more attentive to the Faunus in hiding, in an enraged state to boot.

0-0-0

You know, my periods were never this bad before. Yes, I grew irritable and snappy before, but never to the point where I wanted to snap someone's neck and then throw a stick of dynamite down their throat just because they bumped into me in the hall. I had to hold myself back from jumping on people and beating their heads into the wall. This might be a side effect of the reversal process, Goodwitch didn't stay around long enough for me to ask any questions. But, on the bright side, combat class was coming up! I could bash someone down without feeling bad about it there.

I plastered a smile on my face as I entered the locker room to grab my equipment and change into my combat outfit. Everyone else gave me a wide berth, obviously wise to my current mood. They were like a school of minnows with a shark, stuck in a small pool. When I got changed and everything was strapped up, I left without speaking to any of them. The air lost its tension as soon as I left, if their postures were anything to go by.

My team and RWBY also gave me space on the benches. "Come on guys, I'm not going to punch a hole through your faces." They breathed a sigh of relief. "I save that for the fight floor." They sucked in a breath collectively, back in their fearful states.

Goodwitch came out and got right into things. "It is good to see that you are in fighting condition shortly after your recovery Miss Arc. Would you mind fighting today?"

I stood up. "I would greatly appreciate the chance to fight, ma'am. If only to keep myself in fighting shape after the change."

She nodded and looked down to her tablet. "Good. You will be fighting Miss Xiao Long today. Come down to the arena."

I was ecstatic. I had only fought Yang one other time, and it was shortly after fighting Weiss, so I still had some charge left in me. I knocked her clean out of the ring in the first hit, not thinking that I had swung that hard. She was angry at me but had been held back by Goodwitch, since the fight was already over by rules. I took Jolder off my back and held it to my side, keeping it in its shield form. From what I've seen, a good single punch should give me a decent boost to start the fight.

"Are both combatants ready?" Yang nodded and held her gauntlets up in a guard stance. I nodded and moved Jolder to guard my middle. "Then begin!"

Yang didn't run at me like she would normally start a fight. Instead, she just stood there and held her stance, not moving at all. She was waiting for me to take first strike. I didn't indulge her wish, instead I decided to begin circling around to her left. She began to rotate her body, then her feet followed, keeping her torso pointing my way. I would have used Jolder's gun form to take a shot at her pivot leg, but Goodwitch had prohibited me from using a 20mm round in the arena. Which was annoying, because she still allowed Ruby to use the 50cal bullets as long as she was careful to not point them into the stands.

"Are you going to fight me or just circle me, 'cause you are driving me batty right now!" Yang shouted at me, obviously trying to rile me up. It almost worked before I reminded myself that it was just her style to annoy opponents with bad puns and then smash them into the ground. She would still pay for the joke though.

"Oh, so you're getting Yangry? Calm yo tits, this will go on as long as it needs to. Xiao Long can you just stand there?" Her face contorted in anger, a flicker of red appearing in her eyes and the room warming up slightly. A twitch in her left leg signaled the beginning of her attack, and I quickly brought my shield to bear. A shotgun enhanced punch landed and I absorbed the energy, and another came from my side. I blocked that as well and hooked a foot behind her legs, pulling her off her feet. I slammed Jolder down into her when she was on the ground, backing off before she got back up and retaliated.

She hopped back to her feet and launched herself at me again. The barrage of punches were faster and hit harder, but that just fueled me up faster. A few punches I let get past my guard left some ashes on me and brought down my aura slightly, but I was still above her by a wide margin. The empty click of her gauntlets signaled my counter-attack. I bashed her in the face to gain some room before extending Jolder's handle and bringing it in a broad sweep around my body for extra power. She was still dazed when it hit and she was launched across the floor. She barely stopped herself from going out of the ring and her aura was now in the low yellow, high orange area.

She brought her fists together and activated her semblance fully, the inferno heating the room quite nicely. I didn't let up though, my attacks getting faster and more precise. She couldn't get an attack off, instead she had to focus on blocking my massive strikes or dodging them completely. After another strike of mine was dodged, I decided to end it. I shifted to hammer form and activated the gravity Dust, bringing the hammer down on her head in a strike she didn't see coming. She fell to the floor with a heavy thump and the tiles under her cracked. Her aura was now in the red and Goodwitch called the match.

"Miss Arc is the winner. You will both receive reports on your scrolls later on what you need to fix. Next up will be Mister Midoriya and Miss Sciathe." As I helped Yang get out of the arena, Deku and Willow entered the arena. I found it humorous that those two had been paired to fight each other. Their names were both plant oriented. Or at least, I think Deku is plant like. His hair is green.

0-0

Meanwhile, with our local Mascara Man, things were also not going so well. He was currently trying to move massive amounts of Dust part way across the city without being noticed, and the mooks in White Fang uniforms were hurting the process more than they were helping. He was half tempted to hire some of Junior's men again, just because they could move through the streets more stealthily than Faunus wearing White Fang colors could. "And I have to say it again! Red Dust goes in the red crates, and blue Dust goes in the blue crates! It's freaking color coded!"

Neo wasn't helping either, she was currently sitting on a container swinging her legs idly while playing with her scroll. She was annoyed just as much as Roman was, but she didn't show it. She was debating on whether or not she could find Violet again and hang out with her, it would at least be more fun than sitting here listening to Roman yell at people. Why would Cinder even tell them to move when Abyss was with the White Fang, it wasn't like she was going to sell them out to the authorities. It would just put her in their grasp as well, and the White Fang didn't take kindly to people turning traitor or deserter.

"At least Taurus is out of the damn picture." Roman said under his breath. He was glad the red demon had been dealt with. While Roman could take the lieutenant that took Adam's place, he couldn't defeat Adam himself. Cinder had been both angered and pleased with Adam's death. Angered because that meant she lost a powerful piece, but pleased because that meant one less person to have to be rid of when all was said and done. Roman wasn't blind to her plans, but he couldn't stop them currently. He wasn't powerful enough and he needed to survive.

A white Fang grunt moved over to him. "Torchwick, we currently have a third of the stockpile moved. We won't be able to get it all done by the end of today like you wanted us to."

Roman made a strangling motion with his hands before letting out a deep breath and calming down. "Fine, but I want this place spotless by tomorrow evening. That means no traces of our stay here. Now get back to work." The White Fang grunt nodded and went back to the Dust crates. Torchwick didn't like working with these dumb terrorists. But, it was currently the best workforce he could have for absolutely free at this point in time. Junior's men were only a tier above what he had now, but he had to pay for them and he was sure that Junior didn't want him to borrow more men after that failed Dust robbery.

He was still ticked with Red and the girl now identified as Echo. Those two brats had ruined a completely good haul. Admittedly, it wasn't really all that much compared to what he had now, but it was still a black mark against all of his successes. And ever since then, the old man that ran that shop had invested in heavier security, so it was unlikely that Roman would get a second chance on robbing him blind. There were still plenty of Dust stores around Vale to rob, and he would continue to do so in a large loop to keep the supply coming. If he robbed them all too fast, then everything would fall apart and if he took the money, then they wouldn't have enough to restock. Stealing this much Dust without leaving Vale was a fine art that he had to plan for months in advance to pull off this efficiently.

Apparently, though, Cinder wasn't happy with this amount he was raking in. She said they needed even more than they currently had at this point. He would have to get a large amount in some time soon, or his balls would be over a literal fire. "Come on, Neo, we're heading over to Junior's for the rest of the day. I need a drink." He picked up his cane from its resting spot against a nearby wall as Neo hopped down from the container she was sitting on. She was still on her scroll though, which intrigued Roman. "What are you doing on that?"

She looked up at him. 'I'm trying to see if I can get Abyss' contact info. I want to see Violet again.'

Roman shivered. He was sure that the child was some sort of demon in disguise. "You could probably ask Junior or something. Maybe one of these animals. She's one of theirs, right?"

Neo just nodded and pocketed her scroll before grabbing onto Roman's arm, sending them both to Junior's.

0-0-0

Today was not a good day in any sense of the word. My temper only seemed to rise during the day and that was before I even got hit by the first bad wave of cramps. It was decided for some reason that I would be put with Weiss and Pyrrha in the Grimm assignment from Port, and we were doing Geists. Seriously, I wanted to work with Nora and Ruby! They were doing their assignment on Beringels and Nora's number one plan was to smash it into the ground so many times that it would be an unrecognizable mess before it evaporated.

And then, after Oobleck's class, they all decided to head out into Vale without me. And they left me with Blake! In our room! Why would they leave me with her and not keep Nora or Pyrrha with me? They're my teammates, it would make actual sense for them to stay behind! But no, leave me with the moody cat girl that's been reading in the corner of the room ever since we finished eating. Every now and again I would see her peek over the edge of her book before darting back down once she realized I was watching her. I don't have anything else better to do, Belladonna, so get used to it.

I was currently just silently suffering on my futon, under my sheets to keep warm. Cold exacerbated the cramps I had. "Belladonna, get me one of your books. I need something to keep my mind off this."

She scowled before bringing her book down so I could see her face. "Do you want to maybe reword that? That was an extremely rude way of asking to read something of mine."

I huffed. "Fine. May I kindly borrow one of your smuttiest books?"

A light dusting of pink appeared on her cheeks and her bow twitched heavily. "It's not smut! And besides, it's adult literature. I'm sure that Jaune would not want you reading that."

I snorted and raised an eyebrow. "Jaune doesn't control my life Blake, and does Ruby know what you're reading? Would she allow you to keep that in the room with her if she knew what was written in those pages?"

He blush became darker. "Fair point. Give me just one moment." She got up and went to her room, coming out a second later with a book in her other hand. She closed the door quietly. "Here." She handed me a book labeled _Booty Thief_.

I looked at the title before remembering to that time about a month back when she said the name before. "Blake, this is the book that you were alluding to a while ago, isn't it? Are you trying to say something?"

She held her hands up in a defensive manner. "No no no! I wasn't trying to imply anything! It's just one of the books that wasn't used in the bunkbeds!" She moved back to her corner. "If I were going to imply something, I would have given you _Don't Kiss and Tell_."

I looked at her for a moment before opening the book. It was pretty well written, and it was fun to read through the first chapters that were normally a slog in these types of tales. The story revolved around a sea captain that was dishonorably discharged from the royal navy who went to the way of the pirate a few years after his first career was over. His first mate was his sister, who had gotten into the pirate life before him without telling him. She had covered it up by saying she worked on the docks as an inventory management personnel.

The first bit of the good stuff happened in chapter four, in exactly the same manner that Jaune and I had woken up to that day over a month ago. But the reaction was completely different and it had me biting my lip in excitement. Then I remembered that Blake was in the room with me and I looked over to see what she was doing. Her amber eyes darted back down to her book, her bow twitched. "Hey Blake, when did you start reading these kinds of books?"

She lowered the book so she could look at me. Her lips pursed. "About a year ago."

I hummed in thought. "I don't think that's the case. If you had just started about a year ago, you wouldn't be this heavily invested into them. You read these things in class and in the mess hall, that shows that you have something serious going on here. So again, how long have you been reading these?"

Her eyes narrowed and she closed her book. "A few years. Some time after I left home."

I nodded. "Now was that so hard to admit, Blake? We all have a few secrets to keep, but that one wasn't harmful at all. What would be harmful is if people knew that you were part of-" I cut myself off before saying any more. "Wow, I should not have said any of that. I'm just going to go back to the book and we can forget everything I just said."

Before I could bring the book up to my face, she was in my personal space. "What were you going to say?!"

I inched back. "Wow Blake, personal space, you ever heard of it?" When she didn't move back, I sighed. "Go and put a chair in front of the door handle." She did so and came back to sit in front of me. "You were part of the White Fang and that was when you started to get into these books. The normal adventure and fantasy couldn't entertain you since you got into an action filled life and you had to spice it up with something else."

She shivered and became extremely pale. "I have no idea what you're talking about. There is no way I could be a part of the White Fang since I'm human and they're all Faunus. And they're terrorists now and I'm training to be a huntress and-"

I cut her off by putting my hand over her mouth. "You left them a few months ago after you and Adam Taurus were on a mission to rob a Schnee Dust transport train in Forever Fall. You took out the defenses which included a few older models of the Atlesian Knights and a spider mech. Adam wanted to place explosives that would take the lives of all personnel on the train, not only the guilty ones. You grew wise to the methods that were being employed in the White Fang and cut Adam off of the rest of the train by disconnecting the cars. You enrolled into Beacon and Ozpin allowed you in, despite your previous time in the White Fang. And you hide your cat ears with your bow, which for your information, twitches too much to be just a normal bow."

She sat there flabbergasted, opening and closing her mouth before swaying back and forth slightly. "How… how do you know all this?"

I wave my hand. "I infiltrated the White Fang some time ago under the guise of a powerful assassin. Abyss Ritz is my White Fang name and no I have not actually killed any of the targets that I claimed I did, they all died of natural causes. That reminds me. Next time you see Tukson, give him this message. 'Leave sooner rather than later. Info has leaked.'"

She closed her eyes and took in the information. "I should have made the connection. Bat ears, long hair, dark skin, green eyes."

I patted her shoulder. "Blake, you've known me for like a month. I didn't really give you anything else to pin me to my other self. I don't use my weapons with the Fang because that would be the fastest way to out myself. Poison was the most logical way to go because it doesn't require and actual weapon. A needle is enough to get the job done and it gave me a reason to leave all my weapons at home. Nobody decided to frisk me to see that I had needles or vials of the stuff. Heck, even Ozpin didn't know I was Ritz until I told him, and he knows a shit ton of things!"

"Wait, earlier you said that Ozpin let me in despite knowing that I used to be in the White Fang. Why would he do that?" She moved to sit beside me and I scooted to the side so she would have plenty of space.

"Because he saw the potential of a great Huntress in you? I don't honestly know, Ozpin is a cryptic mother fucker. I only understand half of what he does, the other half is a complete mystery." I laid back and placed the book on my chest.

She thought about what we talked about for a few minutes before speaking again. "What's going to happen now?"

I looked over at her and she was gripping her book tightly against her chest, like some sort of lifeline. "What do you mean, Blake?"

"Are you going to tell your team and my team about this?"

I scoffed. "Blake, if there's anything I truly stick to, it's the fact that I let people have their secrets. You tell your team when you feel it's the right time, and I won't tell mine until you say I can. Simple as that. We sweep this conversation under the rug like it never happened." I grabbed her hand with mine and gave it a squeeze. "You also know one of my secrets now, too, so keep it as insurance I guess. If I ever rat you out, you do the same to me."

She looked at me and gave me a quick hug. "Thank you Echo, you don't know how much this means to me."

I hugged her back awkwardly. I wasn't much one for displays of physical affection. "Sure Blake, what's it between two friends?"

The sound of the lock clicked and we both froze. The door opened a crack before the chair stopped it from opening any further. "Uh, is there something blocking the way guys? The door won't open." Jaune was the one who was trying to open it.

I looked at Blake and she nodded. I turned back to the door and got up to move the chair out of the way. "Yeah, Blake and I were just spending some quality time together and didn't want to be interrupted."

Yang popped out from behind Jaune. "What? I've been trying to do that with her for a whole month and she just suddenly does it with you? What did you talk about? I have to know."

I pursed my lips in a contemplative look. "Nothing serious, just literature."

Her brow furled. "Literature? You talked about books and that somehow required the use of a door block."

I nodded. "Books." I held up the one currently in my hand. "Saucy books."

Jaune's face lit up and Yang started to laugh. Ah, what fun it is to make him do that. The crumpling of plastic bags brought my attention to what Yang was holing in her arms as well as the rest of our teams in the hall. They were all carrying an assortment of bags and containers, some from confectionaries and some from just regular grocery stores. "What's up with all the stuff?"

Yang held a bag up with a grin on her face. "Feel good food for our angry bat friend."

I beamed and snatched it from her hands before ripping it open to find a slice of coffee cake. I didn't even bother grabbing a utensil to eat it, instead stuffing it into my mouth. The smoothness of the pastry with the dark flavor of coffee was blissful and I melted. "I love you guys so much."

That just got another round of laughs as they filtered in to put the stuff away. And I was being truthful, I really did love them. They were like my third family.


	14. Chapter 13- All's Well That Ends Well

Y'know, when I was training my aura so I could use both speed and strength parts of my semblance at the same time, I didn't really see the end results. It costs me four times the amount of Aura to keep both going at the same time and actually requires me to concentrate during a fight. We found both of these out two weeks after my little incident, during a spar with Nora that I wanted to do to test the results. Oh, and it also uses three times the amount of energy I have absorbed.

She hit me twice and I switched over to Jolder's hammer form, darting around her back. I had Jolder in a downward swing when all that energy I had just taken in was lost, causing me to fall with Jolder on top of Nora. I still won the fight, but it caused me to realize that I had even further to go in training my aura than I realized. Hopefully I can decrease the energy and aura drain while increasing my overall aura. It is like a muscle, the more you use it the stronger it gets.

Today was the day that Team RWBY was going into Vale to check out the set up for the Vytal festival. Some students were actually coming in before the break, so the Council wanted to get things set up extremely early. I opted to go with them because everybody else on Team JNPER was busy. Ren and Nora were doing something somewhere, we didn't get to ask them before Nora pulled Ren out of the room at breakneck speed. Jaune and Pyrrha were using today as heavy training, starting out with heavy exercise and then sparring later on. Spending a free Friday doing training, what a weird thing to think about.

I made sure to carry all my weapons, just in the off chance anything happened. I haven't noticed Neo or anybody else watching me the few times I've had to come into Vale, but it never pays to be unprepared. Yang was the only other person who had their weapon, but that was because hers could collapse to the point where they just looked like very large bracelets. Weiss just had to question me about it though. "Why exactly are you bringing your full arsenal? It's not like we'll be attacked in the streets during broad daylight."

I was the first in the airship to Vale, with their team following in shortly after. "Because." I grabbed a strap, letting them have seats. "The last time I was in Vale it felt like someone was watching me." Kind of a lie. "I understand that we can just call our lockers with our scrolls, but that takes up precious time that sometimes you just don't have."

As the airship took off, Ruby took a cookie out of her pocket. Why would someone just have a cookie in their pocket not in a bag? That's disgusting. "Why would someone be watching you? Did you destroy a club or something?" She looked pointedly at Yang.

I smirked. "Nah, just did some investigating about a Dust shop robbery. Headmaster Ozpin wanted me to do it for some reason, didn't say why."

Blake looked skeptical. "So he asked you to investigate the scene of a robbery and didn't tell you why he wanted only you to do it? Wouldn't it make sense for someone years above us to do it instead?"

I just shrugged. "Your guess is just as good as mine."

Yang looked excited. "So, what kind of things did you find out? Was there some sort of clue that lead you to a secret stash of Dust that the thief kept?"

Weiss scoffed. "Yang, this isn't like the movies you enjoy so much. No self-respecting criminal would leave such a clue behind. They make sure to erase any evidence of their involvement."

I had to agree with Weiss. "Weiss is correct here Yang, no criminal worth their Dust would leave something that incriminating behind." The pilot said over the intercom that we'd be landing shortly. "I'll tell you the juicy details later. It's all actually pretty interesting what I found."

We departed from the Bullhead and headed through the city towards the docks. The others were chatting together, except Blake, who had her nose stuffed into a book. She only avoided walking into people by walking behind the rest of the group, as they split the crowds apart. I was a few steps behind them, on the lookout for any tails. Neo might not be in the city right now, but that doesn't mean that someone else might have been sent to follow me.

We passed by a few people setting up signs and banners, and I saw the old man that runs From Dust Til Dawn coming down from his ladder. "Hey girls, I'll meet up with you in a bit. I just remembered that I have to go do something."

They made no indication that they heard me as they kept on walking. Then Blake just turned her head and gave me a nod. I set off for Tukson's. I wanted to make sure that he made it out in time. And if he didn't, then I would be there as deterrent. I slipped through the crowds, ducking through a few alleys to get there faster. When I reached the shop, the windows were still fully transparent and the door was unlocked. I opened up the door and walked in.

Tukson looked up from the register and smiled. "Oh, it's you. I told Blake to tell you, but I guess she didn't. Thanks for the tip, I'm heading out soon."

I rubbed at my face. "You didn't leave out soon enough." He looked like he was going to ask me what I meant but the door opened up behind me and he quieted himself. The light footsteps of Emerald and the heavy footfalls of Mercury entered the store. "So, Tukson, did you finally get in _The Third Crusade_?"

He nodded and held up a finger. "Give me one second." He went into the back and Emerald and Mercury walked past me to browse through the wares. I made sure that they weren't watching when I checked my wallet. It was still there, thankfully. Tukson walked back out with the book in his hand. "Got the first edition too! Will that be all for you today?"

I shook my head. "No, I was thinking about picking a few other things up as well. If you could just hold that for me?" He nodded and put it down on the counter, going back to the register. I walked over to the adult section and began to browse through the books there. Blake had actually gotten me hooked on the one book, but don't tell her I told you all that. She would never let me live it down. She's beginning to pick up some playfulness from Yang.

"Aren't you a little young to be reading those books?" I didn't hear the footsteps come up behind me, must be Emerald. Well, it was also a female voice, but I don't judge if Merc wants to feel like a woman.

"Oh no, whatever shall I do? My need for adult reading material has been found out by a stranger with absolutely no sway over my life. Oh, woe is me!" I held the back of my hand against my head and pretended to sway in a fainting manner. I turned around and saw that it was indeed Emerald who was talking to me. "Don't worry, I've already read something like these. Friend got me hooked." I pretend to look her over. "You look familiar. Have we met somewhere before?"

If she was surprised, she held it back masterfully. "No, I don't believe we have. Emerald Sustrai." She held her hand out for a shake and I obliged. "That over there is Mercury." He just gave a grunt and a small wave, acknowledging the fact that he had been spoken of. He was reading a comic lightly, just to pass the time until I left.

"Seriously, both of you look extremely familiar." I held my chin and tilted my head to the side. "Are you to here for the tournament?"

Mercury looked up from his comic to look at Emerald. I didn't look over to her but I can assume that she gave a slight nod to him. "Yeah, and since we so graciously gave you our names, how 'bout you tell us yours sweet cheeks."

I just deadpanned at him and snorted. "Won't work on me, Black. Emerald here has a better chance than you do." I pointed at her with a thumb. "Anyways, the name's Echo Arc. I'm attending Beacon and will be fighting in the tournament probably."

From beside me, Emerald sounded up. "Probably?"

I deliberated on telling them about the five-man team but decided against it. Let them think I'm on a four-man until they see for themselves. "Yeah, probably." I picked up the first three books in the _Ninjas of Love_ series. "Have you guys seen the recent robberies? I'm beginning to think that even old men on the streets aren't safe these days."

A slight twitch in Emerald's eye was the only indication that she was spooked. "Yeah, it's gotten pretty bad. Hopefully it'll die down before the tournament gets started. It would be horrible if Dust prices kept getting higher." She sounded only slightly forced, I was only able to hear it because of my enhanced hearing.

"Yeah, it would be bad. I'm surprised they still haven't caught Torchwick. It's like the cops are being payed off or something." I walked over to Tukson and placed the books in front of him. "Like, last month for instance. I was walking down the street and passed a police station. Not even four blocks down was a robbed store! The police could have been there in time to stop it easy, but they were nowhere in sight until after it happened, I bet. And Torchwick isn't exactly the most inconspicuous of criminals these days."

They didn't say anything until my purchase was rung up and placed in a bag. Tukson was looking between us nervously. There was a slight twitch from one of Emerald's hands and I felt my wallet leave my pocket. I went to reach for it before stopping and pretending to search for it. "Huh, I could have sworn it was in my pocket right here." Another shifting sound came from Emerald's direction and she produced my wallet from behind her back.

"This is probably yours. It was next to the shelf over there." She pointed to the section we were just in.

I nodded and thanked her while I looked through my wallet for anything missing. Half my lien was gone and so was my flight license. I narrowed my eyes and looked over at Emerald. "Did anything fall out from it that you also picked up? I'm pretty sure that half my lien is gone and so is one of my licenses."

Mercury coughed into his fist to stifle a laugh. Emerald just shot him a glare before reaching into one of her back pockets. She pulled out my license and the larger lien cards I had been carrying. "Yeah, here they are."

I grabbed them from her hands and immediately put the license deeper into my wallet. I counted out the necessary amount of lien for my books before handing the lien cards over to Tukson. "I'll let you keep the finder's fee out of the goodness of my heart. Normally I wouldn't, because it was lost in the store and I would have immediately found it when I found out that it was missing. But since you are a friend, I'll let it pass this time."

A larger tic appeared, only to be covered by her semblance. "Are we friends already?"

I nodded and picked up my purchase. "Yeah, we Huntresses got to stick together. And Huntsmen, I guess." I pointed over to Mercury with a grimace on my face. "But mostly us Huntresses. I definitely wouldn't mind sticking to you for a while." I waggled my eyebrows at her and she flushed lightly. She was totally gay.

Mercury looked between us for a moment before throwing his hands up. "Dang it, I've been trying to get her forever!" He made a show of looking at his scroll. "Come on, Em, Cinder wants us to head to the meeting spot now. You'll see your new girlfriend later."

Emerald sputtered for a moment before smacking the back of Mercury's head. She didn't say anything before she turned heel and marched out the door. Mercury chuckled and gave me a hasty wave over his back before following her out. Tukson audibly slouched behind me. I turned to him and saw that he was gripping the counter, his claws scratching the wood. "That was much too tense for comfort. Why'd you let her take your wallet?"

I shook my head. "I didn't let her. She has some nimble fingers though, and her semblance is tricky. Though, thank you for informing me that it only works on one person at a time. That's some pretty useful info. Get out of Dodge before the day is up, and I mean day. Do not be here when night rolls around, that'll make it easier for them if you're still here by then."

He frantically nodded. "Of course, thank you so much. I'll be sure to pay you back for this." He began to pile the money from the register into a bag as I began to walk out. When I got out of the store, I did a sweep of the street with my eyes, checking to see if Emerald and Mercury were still about. After three minutes of just standing there scanning the crowds, I decided that they had left for good. I pulled out my scroll and messaged Ruby.

She messaged me back a moment later and told me that they were almost at the docks. I once again travelled through the backstreets and alleyways to get to them faster than normally possible through the crowded streets of early midday Vale. When I slipped back into the group, Weiss was going off about how much planning and expertise goes into the preparation of the festival. "And, as a Schnee and student of Beacon, I feel that it was best that I be there to welcome the incoming students to the city of Vale."

Yang blew a puff of air out her nose. "Yeah right, you just wanted to check out the competition."

Weiss looked back at her indignantly. "Of course not! How dare you insinuate such a thing."

"There's nothing wrong with that." I said. Her attention shifted to me. "It's important to know who you might be fighting. But there is also the fact that the Vytal Tournament is here to encourage cooperation and unity between the four academies. So we will be doing both by welcoming the incoming students."

Weiss nodded her head in my direction as she turned back to Yang. "See Yang, Echo knows what I am talking about."

Yang just arched an eyebrow but didn't say anything. _"Technically, I said both of you were right, but I'll let you think I just backed you up Weiss."_ We turned the corner and Ruby gasped I looked away from Yang and saw the Dust shop that had been robbed recently. Again, the store's front window had been blown out into the street in a rain of glass. And the officers that I had met with in front of the previous shop were here as well.

Ruby walked up to the officer that was standing up and asked him, "What happened here?"

He looked up from his notepad and answered her. "Dust shop robbery. Second one this week." He looked past her and looked at us. "Oh, Arc, good to see you again. Here on orders again?"

Before I could answer, his partner called out from inside the store. "They left all the money again!"

He jotted that down on the pad and sighed. "Dang. Who would need that much Dust?"

His partner came out of the store, taking off his gloves and patting himself down. "Don't know. Maybe an army?"

He scoffed. "You thinking the White Fang?"

I butt in. "No, not the White Fang. Give me a moment." I grabbed a pair of gloves and entered the store myself. It looked much like the previous one had, empty cases and Dust tubes. The back was much cleaner and there were no grooves dug into the floor by anything. Banesaw hadn't been here this time. I scoured the floor of the store and found what I had been looking for right next to the cashier desk. A small round mark with some cigar ashes next to it. I popped back out to grab an evidence marker and placed it down next to the area. "Torchwick happened. Again."

The first officer went in to take a picture while the second took off his sunglasses to rub at his eyes. "Seriously, we don't get payed enough for this. You got any ideas why Torchwick is stealing this much Dust?"

I take off the gloves and toss them into a nearby trashcan. "Not yet, no. I have some theories, but nothing extremely concrete just yet. If the headmaster gives me the go ahead, I'll be sure to swing down by the station to give them to you all. Have a good day officers." They wave goodbye to me as I join back with Team RWBY.

"So what was that all about?" Ruby asks me, intrigue shining in her eyes.

"Those guys were the officers I met with back at the Dust shop a month or so ago. And as I said, the same thing that happened here happened last month. But Torchwick has seriously upped his game, two Dust shops in the same week." I pull out my scroll and send the message to Ozpin. He probably would want to be informed of the increase in thefts earlier than the police would tell him.

Ruby furrowed her brows. "They still haven't caught him? And why would they think the White Fang wanted the Dust?"

Weiss snorted, anger drawn on her face. "The White Fang, humph! What an awful bunch of miscreants!"

Blake glared at her. "What's your problem?"

Weiss' anger burned. "My problem?! I don't care for the criminally insane!"

It was Blake's turn to get angry. "They're hardly a bunch of psychopaths. They're simply a group of misguided Faunus."

Weiss' eye twitched and she stomped her foot. "Misguided? Then they must be very misguided if they want to wipe humanity as a whole off the face of Remnant!"

Blake's eyes narrowed into slits. "That must not hold true for all of them."

Weiss let up slightly. "Still, it doesn't mean that they aren't a whole bunch of scum! Those Faunus only know how to lie, cheat, and steal!"

The group became extremely awkward before Weiss realized what she had just said. I coughed into my fist. "Awkward…"

Weiss was quick to fix her mistake. "No, not you Echo. I meant the White Fang Faunus!"

I waved off her apology. "No problem, Weiss. Just next time, phrasing."

We were interrupted as a commotion down on the docks drew our attention. Two sailors were chasing after Sun, who was currently singing off of lampposts and eating bananas. "Stop right there Faunus!"

The commotion had also drawn the attention of the two officers that were investigating the Dust store. They followed our group and stopped at the edge of the docks. Sun was about to reach the edge before he dropped a banana peel in front of the two sailors, tripping one up. "Someone stop that no-good stowaway!"

Sun stopped at the post at the edge and hung upside down. "Hey! A no-good stowaway would have been caught! I'm a freaking great stowaway! You guys didn't even know I was there!"

The first officer reached down to pick up a pebble before tossing it up at Sun. "Hey you! Get down from there!"

Sun just laughed before dropping a peel down on his face, which he growled at. Then Sun launched himself into a sprint after swinging of the post, running past us. He threw a wink at Blake before turning at the corner. Yang prodded Weiss in the shoulder. "Well, there goes the competition."

Weiss stuttered for a moment before pointing at the corner he had just turned. "After him!" Our group gave chase, with me at the rear because I didn't want to be involved in the collision that was about to happen. We chased him for a few blocks before someone came out of the alley in front of us, causing all five people to go down in a pile. I was still standing.

Ruby looks up from her spot on the ground to where Sun had been but doesn't see him there. "Drats, he got away." She then realized that someone was underneath her so she looked down. Her silver eyes met the green eyes of Penny and Penny smiled.

"Salutations!" The realization that they were all on top of Penny in a pile threw them into action, as they quickly got up and brushed themselves off.

Ruby looked down at Penny, who was still on the ground. "Are you… okay?"

Penny cheerily looked at her. "Of course! I am feeling just fine."

Ruby and the rest of her team give each other bewildered looks before Yang speaks up. "Do you maybe wanna get up?"

Penny smiles and pauses for a moment. "Yes!" She rolls on her back slightly before hopping back to her feet. "It is a pleasure to meet you all. I am Penny Polendina!"

Ruby is the first to respond. She waves happily and smiles. "Hi Penny! I'm Ruby Rose."

Yang followed after her, a slightly more subdues smile on her face. "Yang."

Weiss lifted her chin up and spoke briefly. "Weiss Schnee."

Blake picked her book off the ground. "Blake."

Penny looked over to me before I realized that I still hadn't spoken yet. "Echo DeVris Arc. But you can just call me Echo."

Penny beams and looks over us. "It's a pleasure to meet you all!"

Yang coughs awkwardly. "Uh, you already said that. You sure you didn't bump your head?" Blake elbows her ribs and she throws a questioning look at her partner.

Penny takes a second to think about what Yang had said. "That I did!" She didn't say anything else, instead opting to just stand there and smile at us. Creepily, if I may add. Again, I was reminded of my dislike of those porcelain dolls. Sure, you could see the emotion on her face, but there was still that part of the uncanny valley thrown in there that was enough to trip me up.

Weiss was the one who got me out of my thoughts. "Well, we apologize for running into you, we must be off." The group turned around.

Ruby took a moment to look over her shoulder and throw a wave towards Penny. "See you later, friend!"

The sound of fast steps followed us. "She was… weird…" Yang put, oh so eloquently.

Weiss shook her head. "Enough about her. Where did that Faunus riff-raff get off to?"

Penny suddenly popped in front of the group. "What did you call me?"

Yang moved back a half-step. "Sorry, I didn't think you'd hear me."

Penny shook her head. "Not you." She pointed her head and finger at Ruby. "You."

Ruby looked at us for help but we were just standing there letting her decide her own fate. "Uh… friend?"

Penny looked ecstatic. "Do you really mean that? Am I really your friend!?"

"Ummmmm…" Ruby looks over Penny's shoulder to see the rest of her team shaking their heads and me nodding mine. "Yes?"

Everyone but me face palms. "Sensational!" Penny picks Ruby up in a hug and swings her around. "We can have a sleep over, and paint our nails, and talk about cute boys!"

When she puts Ruby down, Ruby walks back over to Weiss' side. "Was I like this when you met me?"

Weiss whispers back to her. "No, she is far more coordinated."

"So," I step in front of the two partners, "What are you doing here in Vale, Penny?"

"I'm here to fight in the tournament!" She puffs up her chest.

Weiss peeks out from behind me. "Wait, you are here to fight in the tournament?"

Penny nods energetically and gives off a crisp salute. "I am combat ready!"  
Weiss looks her up and down. "You don't exactly look the part. Is that your combat outfit?"

Blake pokes some fun at her. "Oh, so says the one wearing a dress."

Ruby comes in to save her partner. "It's a combat skirt." She holds out her hand and Weiss gives her a low-five.

Ignoring the looks from the Yang and Blake, Weiss looks back to Penny. "If you're here for the tournament, does that mean that you know that monkey-tailed… rapscallion?"

Blake bristles. "Stop calling him that!"

I push myself in between the two. "Both of you stop. You get nowhere by fighting each other. And Sun is on a Huntsmen team, so he's not one off those 'riff-raff' as you put it Weiss."

She looks shocked. "You know who that was? Why didn't you tell us?"

I held my hands up placatingly. "It's not exactly public student knowledge. I know about most of the students that will be here for the tournament. I didn't know Penny here was participating though, so her team's addition must be recent."

Penny nods when Weiss looks over at her. "It is true. I was just recently added to the tournament ranks along with my team. My father and General Ironwood have high expectations of me!" She stops for a moment before turning around. "I'm afraid I must go now. It was nice meeting you friend Ruby and her friends!"

After she left, we decided to head back to Beacon. We weren't going to get much else done after all that. On the way back, Blake and Weiss were not talking to each other. Instead, they just glared each time the other walked into their line of vision. I was probably going to spend the rest of the day in the hangar, talk with Rouge or something.

0-0

Mercury and Emerald walked into Roman's latest hideout and looked around. The White Fang grunts were milling about, some carrying weapons and others carrying crates of Dust. Mercury and Emerald walked up to Roman, who was looking at his heist table with a frown on his face. Cinder was still riding him to get more Dust, and fast. Thankfully, he had just the plan for a large haul tomorrow. "Hey old man, how's the business?"

Roman groaned and looked back at Mercury. "It goes. Would go faster if Neo were here and if our boss wasn't needing it all so fast. Where were you two today. I thought Cinder wanted you to keep your hands clean?"

Emerald glared at Mercury. "We were going to clean up your mess, since you can't seem to do it yourself, but we were stopped by that Echo girl. So we're still clean."

Mercury leveled a smirk at his partner. "Yeah, and I found out that Em here swings for the other team. She got hit on by the chick, and she didn't yell at her."

Emerald shot a glare at him but he didn't back down. She took in a deep breath as she remembered the encounter with the girl, and her eyes widened. "She called you Black."

Mercury scoffed. "Yeah, that is my last name if you didn't quite know. What about it?"

Emerald shook her head before looking at him straight in the eyes. "No, she called you Black when you didn't tell her your last name. All you said was Mercury."

Roman swore under his breath. "She knows who you are, you fuckwit." He looked at Emerald. "That means she could know who you are as well."

Emerald thought about it and shuddered. "You're right. She accused me of stealing her wallet and money, which usually doesn't happen if you just met a person. They usually just tell the police or something instead of confronting me directly. She was also watching my hands, like she knew I was going to try to steal from her."

Roman shook his head and held up his hands. "You're bringing this info to Cinder yourselves. I'm not dealing with that stuff, I have something to do tomorrow and it needs my attention."

Emerald was irked, so she swiped his lighter before storming out. Mercury just looked between the two amusedly before heading out after her. He might not like what was coming up shortly, but heck was he amused by the fighting of his acquaintances. And he was beginning to get pumped up, imagining a fight with the girl they had met today. He would enjoy seeing her face between the ground and his boots.

0-0-0

I had spent the good portion of the day after coming back down in the hangar. Rouge and I were talking about upgrading Air Echo with a few new gadgets she wasn't equipped with. We drew up a few blueprints of the design plan, but a few of them just wouldn't work. The ones that did work would have to be cut down because the equipment load would be too much. We finally agreed on one that would up the firepower by a large margin and improve mobility decently. He and his teams were getting to work on that when I left out for dinner.

Blake ran into me when I walked into the dorm building, tears in her eyes. I stopped her from running further by grabbing onto an arm. "Let me go!" She tried to pull her arm away, but I held strong.

"Not until you tell me what went wrong."

She still struggled but then gave up, slouching. "Fine, but not here." I let go and followed her into Beacon's main courtyard. "I told my team. But… it wasn't in the calmest way…" She sighed before taking off her bow. "They must hate me now that they know."

"I knew you would look better without the bow!" We looked up to see Sun sitting on a post, his tail wrapped around it for support.

"Wukong, how long have you been sitting there?" I didn't see him when we walked here, but I also wasn't really paying attention to my surroundings. Something I really should do wherever I go.

"For a while, person I have never met before yet knows my name." He hops down and introduces himself to Blake. "Hey, my name's Sun Wukong. What's up?"

She looked wary of him, like he was a spy. "She had a falling out with her team, or so she thinks. She was telling me before you interrupted us, but I gathered what she was about to say from the clues I already had."

He looked at me with slight annoyance. "Are you going to speak for her every time or something? I'm sure she can talk for herself."

"Of course I can talk for myself!" Blake snapped at him. "But my friend was just being courteous and answered for me because I'm not really in the best of moods right now!"

He held his hands up defensively. "Okay, sorry. Didn't mean to step on any toes. Anyways, since you obviously know who I am, how about you two?"

"Blake Belladonna." Blake responded curtly.

"The name's Echo DeVris Arc, but you can call me Echo. And I know much more than just your name. Sun Wukong, leader of Team SSSN. Partner is Neptune Vasilias, who is hydrophobic. Other two teammates are Sage Ayana and Scarlet David." I hold out my hand for a handshake and he tentatively accepts it.

After he's done with the handshake he scooches over to Blake. He whispered at her, "Does she do that often?"

Blake just glared at him and headed off for the air pads. The last air ships for the day were heading out to Vale and back in their runs. We all boarded and sat in silence. While on the ride I remembered that I had left my books in the hangar, and I smacked my forehead. "Gods damn it."

Sun, who had been playing a game on his scroll, looked up at me. "What?"

I scratched at my nose. "I forgot my books in the school hangar when I was working on a Bullhead. Could have been reading one of them now." It would have been _The Third Crusade_ as the others would be read in the dorm room. When no one else was around.

"You have your scroll, don't you?" He asks and I nod. "Just play some games or something. It's what I do when I want to pass the time. That, or I sleep."

I realized that he had a point. I did have my scroll, but I wasn't going to play games. Time to read up some more on the students coming for the tournament. I was going through their bios, Sun was playing games on his scroll, and Blake was just sitting there quietly, her bow still in her hand. We landed and followed Blake, where she led us to an apartment complex. She pulled out a key from her pants and unlocked the door she led us to, letting us in before shutting and locking the door.

"Sleep." She didn't say anything more before going into the room at the end of the hall and the lock clicked.

Sun and I glanced at each other and he jumped onto the couch before I moved. "Dibs!"

Fuck, the sacred law of dibs cannot be revoked. You win this time Wukong. I set my weapons down again the wall next to the recliner and sit down. My scroll chimes and I check it. Jaune sent me a message.

'Hey, where r u?'

I respond with the truth of course. 'With Blake, making sure she's okay. And text with proper Valean please, you did not go through school just to text like that.'

He responds almost immediately. 'Cool, just making sure you were okay. I'll tell Ruby that you know where Blake is. She's been super worried.'

I frantically type out a message. 'You can't!'

'What do you mean? She's Ruby's teammate and friend.'

I sigh and send the reply. 'Just trust me Jaune, she has to search for Blake tomorrow. It's just how things work out.'

'Fine, against my better judgement, I won't tell her. Better be glad I didn't give my word as and Arc.'

I smile. 'Of course, bro. Love ya, have a good night =)!'

'Night.'

I put my scroll back in my pocket and lean back in the chair, wincing when I feel a muscle that's sore for some odd reason. "You okay? You don't need the couch, do you?"

I pop my back slightly and let out a sigh. "No, Sun, I just had a sore muscle. Should be good by tomorrow."

He frowned and got up. "Nuh-uh. That's not going to fly. Get over here." He got up from the couch and motioned for me to lay down on it. Blake was just in the other room, so I didn't have a reason to not trust him. I walked over and laid down on the couch. "Back facing me." I flipped over and he straddled my back.

"Wukong, if you even think of doing anything funny…" I began to warn him before his warm hands met my back. Even through my clothes, I could tell that his hands were warmer than most other people's. And the way he got deep into the muscles, ohhhh…

"Sage used to get back cramps all the time when we first met, so Nep, Scar and I began to learn how to give massages." He was getting up into my upper back, into the space between my shoulder blades. "You kind of have the same muscles that he does. What weapons do you have?"

I struggle to remember what Sage has through the warm bliss of the massage. "Battle axe. Looks like a shield right now."

I felt him shift slightly, obviously looking over to where my weapons are. "That's the head of it. Holy smokes, that thing must be massive! How do you even wield it without being super buff?"

"Semblance." That's all I can give him before he hits a bundle of extra tense muscle, just destroying all tension there.

"That's all I get?" I respond with a nod. "Fine, I guess I'll get to see you in action sooner or later. What re the other two?"

"Swords, knuckles." I swear, this boy could get a job as a masseuse is Huntsman work didn't really agree with him as much as it does now.

He whistled lowly. "Nice. Last question before we're done. What's up with the headphones?"

"I'll show you." He finished up and I sat up slowly. I took them off and he looked shocked. "They allow me to hide my ears but keep the same range of hearing. I can also mute people basically."

He laughed lightly, not wanting to wake Blake up if she was already asleep. "That's awesome. Where did you get them?"

I tossed them to him so he could look at them. "Made them myself when I was seven."

He balked at me before putting them on. "Seriously, when you were seven? You must be some sort of genius or something." He turned his head around to hear the noises around us. It wasn't much though, just the sounds of the city and some light breathing. Wait, light breathing? I focus on where it's coming from and I figure that it's coming from the bedroom. Blake must be at the door. "Neptune would love these, only to talk about. He's a super nerd."

I snicker when he hands them back to me. "I believe he would tell you that he prefers intellectual? And yeah, I'm a genius. I graduated from normal schools when I was seven, then I trained under an outside Huntsman for three years as well as the town Huntsmen and Huntresses. I moved to Vale and got into Beacon a year earlier than normal."

His shocked look grows even more. "Seriously?!" I nod and he shakes his head. "Man, I am surrounded by smart people. Makes me feel bad man, I tell ya."

"Sun, you bring you to the team, nothing more nothing less." He looked confused so I went into detail. "Sun, even if you may think that you're not that smart, it's not true. You just have smarts in other areas that are important. Like, how to cheer someone up. How to have fun. Street smarts, obviously. What you do makes you Sun Wukong, leader of Team SSSN. Don't you forget it."

He breathes deep, a smile growing on his face. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks Echo." He holds out a fist for a fist bump and I give him one. "You feel like a real bro, no offense."

I laugh at that. "No offense taken, Sun. Even my own brother says that."

He looks over to the recliner. "I can still take the seat if you want the couch. No fur off my tail."

I shake my head. "Nah, you already helped me out enough with that massage. I might ask you for another one before you head back to Haven. I prefer to be near my weapons if I'm not in Beacon."

He shrugs his shoulders and sits down on the couch as I get up. "Sounds good. If you're up before me, wake me up. Don't be afraid to flip the couch if I won't get up though, Nep never feels bad about it."

I smile at the image. "Sure, night Sun."

I walk back over to the recliner and sit in it, reclining back and closing my eyes. That massage really helped me relax and I feel myself slipping into dreamland quickly.

0-0

Ruby knocked on Team JNPER's door, wanting to talk to Jaune. He might know how to fix this, or where Blake might be. Really, Ruby was willing to look anywhere tomorrow to make sure that her teammate was okay. The door opened and Jaune poked his head out. "Oh, hey Ruby, what's up?"

"Can you help me? I can't reach Blake's scroll and I looked all over Beacon but still couldn't find her." She looked down at her feet with a desolate expression on her face.

Nora had heard Ruby and zipped over to the door. "Ooh ooh, me me!" She pushed Jaune out of the way. "Echo knows where she is, 'cause she's with her! And she said that you have to look for them tomorrow, like a huge hide-and-seek game!"

Jaune smacked his face with his palm. "Nora…"

She looked at Jaune. "Yes, fearless leader?"

He just sighed. "Never mind."

"Okie dokie!" Nora went back to her bed.

"You know where she is?!" Ruby got up in Jaune's face. "Tell me! Is she okay?"

Jaune backed up. "I don't know where she is, but sis said that she would make sure Blake is okay. I'm sure that she also means safe."

"What did Nora mean about needing to look for them tomorrow?" Ruby tried to look past Jaune but he stepped out into the hallway and shut the door.

He shook his head. "Honestly, no clue about that. Sometimes, I just learned that it's better to just trust her decisions and not question them. Things usually work out in the end. If she says things will be fine, then they'll be fine."

Ruby puckered her lips and thought long and hard about Echo, Jaune's sister. She didn't know much about her, but she seemed even more mysterious than Blake. She wasn't nearly as quiet, but there was still that air of mystery about her. She knew what everyone liked and she seemed like she knew things about everyone. But Ruby, heck, all of her friends, barely knew much about her. But, despite all of that, her plans were sound. She was a genius of course, so Ruby relented to Jaune. "Fine, can you and your team help look for her?"

Jaune nodded and ruffled Ruby's hair. "Sure Ruby. Just make tell us what time we need to meet you before heading out and we'll be there."

She jumped up and wrapped her arms around Jaune's neck. "Thanks, Jaune." She gave him a light peck on the cheek before darting back into her room.

Jaune stood there, a hand on the cheek that Ruby had kissed. His face was beginning to glow red. He shook himself out of his daze and turned back to the door to his room, but he stopped when he realized something.

He didn't have his scroll.

"Fuck."

0-0-0

Morning was something, that's all I can say. I was the first up and did have to roll Sun off of the couch to get him up. Blake came out to check what the commotion was and stared at us judgmentally before heading back into the room to take a shower. I was going to make breakfast, but there was nothing in the pantry or the fridge. So, when Blake was done getting ready, we kitted up and headed out for breakfast. Breakfast was tense, with Sun and I talking, but Blake just sat there and ate silently. Her brooding face was on.

When we were done with that, she wanted to go by Tukson's. I informed her that he shut down his store yesterday and that I had probably been his last customer. A look of disappointment flitted across her face before she led us to a library. We sat in there until lunch time and headed to a café. That's where she told Sun about her being in the White Fang and about her time with Team RWBY.

Sun mulled over the story while drinking the rest of his coffee. "So, you want to clear the White Fang's name of the robberies? That won't really do much if they're already known as a terrorist organization Blake."

She let out a breath. "I know, just… I don't feel like they would be doing something like this. It's not working towards Faunus rights. It doesn't make sense."

Sun tapped the table. "Well, if they really are going after Dust, then I know where they might go next. There's a big shipment of Dust coming in today at the docks."

Blake looked intrigued. "How big?"

Sun spread his arms out. "Massive. Schnee Dust crates. I heard about it when I was on the ship. Some of the crew were talking about it. They said it was for preparation of the festival."

I nodded. "Makes sense. Amity Colosseum just eats Dust like there's no tomorrow."

"Good." Blake made to leave. "Then you two can go back to Beacon while I check it out."

Sun and I just glanced at each other and then laughed at her. When our laughter died down, Sun wiped a tear from his eye. "No way are you going down there by yourself. I'm going with you."

"As am I, Blake. You should always have backup." I stood and clamped a hand on her shoulder. "If you go into a battle knowing yourself but not the enemy, for every win you will suffer a defeat. Luckily for you, I know the enemy. If he does indeed show up."

She looked at Sun and me, a small smile on her face now. "Thank you. Both of you." She payed for her cup and started to leave. "Let's go. We have to get Echo some different clothes."

I realized, that yes, I did need different clothes for this. Against the dull colors of the buildings at the docks, I would stand out like a beacon to anybody passing by. She brought us to this clothing store that was out of the way, off the main street. It was, of course, run by a Faunus. I left my weapons with Sun while I picked out a new outfit. Black cargo shorts with a dark grey belt, plenty of pockets. Then a long sleeved, tight fitting grey shirt with blue accent stitches and a skull over the left breast. I rolled the sleeves up to my elbows.

I put it on and then walked out to show Blake. She nodded and then handed me a beanie. Again, my hair. I put that on and it completed the outfit, all I need are new shoes. Thankfully, there's a shoe shop right next door. We pick up a pair of black combat boots, like the ones Ruby wears. Surprisingly, I haven't seen hide nor hair of Ruby or anyone else on the team for that matter. I feel like they've been close at one point, but it just happens that we go around the corner one moment before they come around the other. Like those cartoons where they're going around a pillar and never run into each other until one person heads the other direction.

Anyways. We go back to the apartment so I can put my old clothes there and then we head out for dinner. We have Mistralian takeout and walk our way to the docks. The noodles were good, but the sauce could use some work. It was slightly too watery for my tastes. Needed to be thicker and heartier. When we got to the docks, we had to jump a fence to avoid the security and we climbed a ladder to get a good vantage point. We were now looking over the main dock yard as the sun went down. Shift change for security was probably going to happen soon, but there wouldn't be any new guards coming in tonight.

Sun left us at around eight, and got back at ten thirty. "Hey guys, I was getting kind of hungry again, so I stole us some bananas."

"Sun, you were gone for two and a half hours. And where did you steal bananas from? And why steal, you have perfectly good money?!" I about got up to berate him but Blake pulled me down and shushed me. I picked up the engine sounds of Bullheads not a second later, and they were moving quickly. They were also pretty close to the ground as they almost skimmed a few buildings when they came into sight. They slowed down when they reached the dock yard and flew lower to the ground before a few actually touched down.

When the first grunt stepped out of the open door of a Bullhead, Blake shook slightly. "No…"

I rubbed her shoulder. "Sorry Blake, but it looks like they are stealing Dust."

"Come on, you animals! We aren't the most inconspicuous of thieves right now!" The bowler hat of Roman showed over the various White Fang grunts as he stepped out of the Bullhead. He was twirling his cane around and had a scowl on his face. "I want us out of here in fifteen minutes!"

"What are they doing with a human?" I could feel Blake's muscles tense further.

"Don't know. But now that we know it's them, let's get going." Sun said while he moved off towards the ladder and I went to follow him, but Blake just jumped off the roof and onto a nearby shipping crate. He swore under his breath. "I'm going after her. Do what you want, but we could definitely use the backup." He jumped onto the same crate that Blake had used and slowly moved to where Blake was heading.

I went to the ladder and slid down, sticking to the shadows of the clouds when there were no containers or buildings to block view. I feel that letting Ruby know where we are now if acceptable. I pull out my scroll and send her a message. 'Do not respond to this. Meet us at the docks. Bring Penny.' I shut my scroll and moved to the last crate, peeking around the corner.

"Oh, don't you know kitty cat? They're working with me." Roman brought the end of his cane back and shot at their feet, blowing Blake backwards. I caught her and put her down before readying my fists.

Sun popped off a container and started to fight with the grunts. "You go help Sun, I'll take care of Mascara Man here."

She looked like she was about to argue but then decided against it. She rushed off to help Sun while I moved on Torchwick. "Oh, it's you again. New outfit I see. It really doesn't suit you."

"Yeah, laugh it up chuckles. Are you going to insult my new outfit or are you going to fight?" I dash in and swing a left hook at him, which he nimbly evades.

"Well, feisty aren't we? Just like kitty cat over there." He swung his cane lazily at my face and I met it with the back of my gauntlets. It was like he was swinging a pillow at me.

"Wow, you swing like a baby. Maybe that should be in your criminal records as a crime. 'Roman Torchwick hits like a sock 'em bopper'."

His face twitched and he swung his cane faster, aiming for my ribs. I cocked my fist back and met the attack head on. This swing was better, more like a baseball bat going at twenty miles per hour. He didn't let up after that one attack though, and he kept swinging almost wildly to try and get at me. I kept on blocking and absorbing the blows to fuel my semblance. Soon, I had enough to switch up fighting styles so I backed up and drew my swords, combining them into The Heavens.

"You've gotten even more persistent kid." We clashed again, this time sword against cane. He was still at the advantage because he could swing his cane and hit me with any part. A few blows got past my guard and landed solidly against my ribcage. I don't know why he was avoiding my head, but it was annoying. He wasn't taking this fight seriously. I split my swords after I landed a blow and began to unleash a flurry of slashes. A few, he blocked, but a fair share of them met his body. His coat began to show tears.

We disengaged and he looked down at his coat. "This was my favorite coat!"

"That'll teach you to wear your favorite coat to a heist, Roman." He snarled and came at me even faster than before. Before I could think to block, his hits landed on me like a truck. I let a few not be absorbed to make it look like I was starting to lose, but I could feel my aura was still above ninety. I slipped Sol into its scabbard and reached for Jolder. When I grabbed it, I slung it off my back and immediately went into a shield charge. He brought up his cane and met the attack head on, but I flung my arm out when I felt it connect and he was sent skidding away.

He was still on his feet, but now he was serious. You could see it in his eyes. "No more play time kiddo. You're messing with the big leagues."

I put Luna in its scabbard and extended the haft of Jolder. "And you're messing with the wrong girl." A shot sounded off and Roman had to dodge to avoid being hit by a sniper round.

"Nobody messes with my friends!" Ruby sounded off from a nearby building.

"Not now little red, it's your bed time!" He fired a flare shot up to where Ruby and Penny were, and Penny grabbed Ruby before jumping off to avoid the explosion.

In his distraction, I let out a portion of the energy to dash at him and land a large blow into his legs. He was thrown into the air and I used both strength and speed to swing Jolder around to slam him into the ground. The asphalt cracked and he coughed. I kicked at his head, but he recovered in time to latch onto my foot and try to throw me away. Luckily, he didn't account of how heavy Jolder was and he only slightly moved me. I brought Jolder down onto the hand holding Melodic Cudgel and he gasped in pain, letting go of it. I kicked it away and Ruby picked it up.

"Roman Torchwick, you are under arrest for crimes against Remnant and its people. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You no longer have the right to an attorney." Right as I was about to bring the hammer down on his head, he briefly shimmered and my foot went right through him. He shattered like a million pieces of glass.

I immediately switched Jolder to its rifle form and loaded the gravity Dust bullets, unloading them into the engines of the nearby Bullheads. They were forced to land, but all that came out were White Fang grunts. Roman was nowhere in sight, but we stopped them from taking the Dust. Fucking Neo. "So, uh, what do I do with this?" Ruby held up Melodic Cudgel and I sighed.

"Hand it to me, I'll bring it to Headmaster Ozpin later. We have to wait on the police to show up, and then we can all go back to Beacon. Where are Yang and Weiss?" As soon as I asked that, they showed up from behind a crate, out of breath and red in the face. Ruby handed the cane to me and went to meet with her teammates. They dragged Blake over and Sun just stood there awkwardly. "So, Penny, how was your day?"

"It was fantastic! I was walking through Vale when I bumped into Ruby and Yang and Weiss and then Ruby and I went searching for Blake. She took me to a café where I had a coffee and a sandwich. They were delicious." She hiccupped at the end.

I sniggered. "Penny, if you didn't think they were good, you could have just told me. I'm not one to judge."

She cocked her head to the side. "But I am not lying. They were indeed delicious. Ruby told me so." Two hiccups, but the last statement was truth.

I raise an eyebrow at her. "Penny, you hiccup when you lie. And can you even taste anything?"

She froze up. Her pupils slowly closed, the motion looked like a camera covering up its lens. "I have no idea what you're talking about." Hiccup.

I pat her shoulder. "Your secret's safe with me, friend. And just so you know, you're just as real as any one of us."

She opened her mouth to speak but just shut it a second later. Without saying anything else, she walked off to the front of the dock yard. It was probably the doc or Ironwood telling her that she needed to return home, and she was heading for the car. I watched her go with a small smile on my lips. I spared a glance for the reconciling team and my smile got bigger. Today was a success in my books. It would be better, but Neo just had to show up at the wrong time.

I took the beanie off and ran a hand through my hair. "All's well that ends well, I guess."


	15. Chapter 14- While the Going is Hot

All did not end well.

We got chewed out by Goodwitch and got detentions before our finals. I got chewed out twice though, once with Team RWBY and the other time in Ozpin's office. She went off about how I should know better than to go off and knowingly fight with Torchwick and the White Fang, and how I should have informed them of the operation that was happening. Ozpin just sat there with this stupid grin etched on his face, silently sipping his coffee.

The sick bastard enjoyed watching me get scolded like a brat.

When that was all over and done with, I went back to my room and got enveloped in a group hug. Seems that Goodwitch told the rest of my team where I had been and what I did. Nora was mad that I hadn't invited her to go smash bad guys with me, Pyrrha had been worrying that I had been injured, Ren was his normal stoic self, but Jaune was the one that worried me for a moment. After the group hug, he just held me at arm's length and looked me up and down.

"You're an idiot, sis." These were the first words out of his damn mouth. I kid you not. Jaune, the one who wouldn't say anything like that months ago, just told me straight to my face that I'm an idiot.

I couldn't help but laugh and he scowled. He was about to say something but I just hugged him. "Looks like you grew a spine, bro. Good on ya. And yeah, I know I'm an idiot. But I'm a lovable idiot, with a kickass Bullhead."

He deflated and hugged me again. "Yeah, you are. Just don't do something like that again without telling us first. You're my sister, and a teammate. We'll always have your back." He stepped back after letting me go and looked at everyone else. They just nodded their heads and smiled at him and then me.

My chest got warmer, emotion welling up inside of me. "I love you guys." They laugh at that. "We should get to bed, classes are wrapping up soon. I know Jaune needs all the sleep he can get."

Jaune just stutters and tries to deny it but we shake our heads at him. He drops his head and goes into the bathroom first, holding onto his sleep shirt and shorts. Bed time routines go on as normal, and soon we're all laying in our beds with the lights out. Ren and Nora fall asleep quickly, but Jaune and Pyrrha end up staying awake a while longer. They just stare up at the ceiling until they fall asleep. Me, I'm going over what happened in my head.

" _Neo shouldn't have been back in town yet. There was absolutely no indication that she was there until Roman was gone. She didn't even try to attack me. Am I enough of an unknown that they don't want to hit me just yet? What will the effect be of stopping them from taking the shipment? Will Roman have to get more aggressive? I could have just kept my nose out of the entire thing and everything would have gone to canon more than likely, but that would be too suspicious. My ties with Team RWBY are too strong for me to just leave Blake alone with Sun, they would have questioned why I let Blake get away. Saying that she outran me would be a lie they would see through immediately."_

I had to cut myself off before I stayed awake the whole night. There was no use in thinking about that all right now. Right now, it was time to focus on the semester finals before the first break. And sleep. Sleep first.

I love sleep.

0-0

Roman was livid.

That kid that they were keeping tabs on had ruined everything that had been planned out. The guards had been payed off, nobody was supposed to be at the docks, but somehow three trainees had been there to stop them. And then Red came in with a friend.

But it was all that Echo girl's fault. He was missing Melodic Cudgel because of her. He also would have been in prison or some sort of cell if Neo hadn't been there. She got back early from her job apparently, and had been taking a stroll along the rooftops when she spotted him in the jam he had gotten himself into.

But now he was in another kind of mess. He was out tons of Dust, and Cinder would be coming by tomorrow wanting to see his haul. There was no way he was going to get out of this without a few singed hairs as the best outcome. Maybe he could smuggle himself to Vacuo before she came and then dye his hair blue and become someone's totally not thief uncle? No, that wouldn't work, he looked terrible in blue.

"Well well well, what have we here Roman?" A chill crept up his spine, even as the room was steadily getting warmer. "What happened to the master thief of Vale? You were supposed to get me Dust, today. And now I come in and see no more than there was the last time I checked up on you."

Roman had to bite his tongue from responding scathingly. He had gotten more Dust than the last time she had come in, just nowhere near the amount he would have if the shipment had been stolen. A few crates were heavier with the Dust he had stored away, but it didn't look as impressive as a few more cargo containers. "My plans were ruined, Cinder. I didn't think that those meddling kids would be there. It would have gone down without a hitch if they weren't there."

Cinder just tsked at him. "That is not my problem, Roman. That's your problem. And you'll have even more problems if you don't make up for this failure. Get the Dust." She stood next to him, placing a burning hand against his hat. "Or you will feel just how hot my anger burns." She burned a hole through his hat and strutted off.

He winced and took his hat off before tossing it into a nearby trashcan. "Time to get a new hat." He went to grab his cane before he remembered that yes, it was gone. "And Melodic Cudgel two…" He frowned as he walked away, off to a few stores. Time to get his gear.

0-0-0

Finals were done. Thank the gods. Oobleck's was the worst out of all of them. He had open response questions for everything. And when the packet for the test is over ten pages, your wrist tends to cramp up. There were people who didn't even get to finish in time because they had to stop writing and put ice on their wrists! However, I am fairly confident that I at least passed it.

Since each class final got their own day, we were done before lunch. We all reconvened at the lunch table and told each other about our plans for the break. Ruby and Yang were heading back to Patch to tell their dad about all the stuff that they did and probably go on a camping trip. I wondered what else they were going to get up to over the two-week break, but decided not to ask.

Pyrrha was going to head back to Mistral, and then head off to some resort or something. The entire trip was being paid for by her sponsors. She would have loved to stay back with her team, but her parents insisted that she come back to spend time with them. She loved her parents, so she would bear with the work she had to do over break if she got to spend time with them.

Weiss was going to be staying in Vale for some reason, she didn't really explain why. Ruby and Yang offered to bring her with them to Patch, and if you were really observant, then you could tell she was actually considering. She politely declined, stating that she was most definitely not one for camping trips. She didn't want to dirty her clothes by spending time unnecessarily outdoors.

Blake was being quiet, no doubt thinking about the White Fang and her investigation into the whole ordeal that went down at the docks. She had asked me to not get involved any further than I already had and I told her that I wouldn't. It wouldn't hurt to not tell her that I was already deeper into the whole thing than she would ever get. When badgered by Yang, she told us that she too would be staying in Vale for the break. But, she didn't say anything further than that. Yang stopped pestering her.

I looked over to Ren and Nora, they were being oddly quiet, especially Nora. She was picking at her stack of pancakes while Ren was quietly sipping at a cup of green tea. Now, Nora not just inhaling the pancakes in front of her was a pure sign that something was wrong. I could make a decent guess at what it was. They didn't have family to go to and they probably didn't actually have any plans for the break, so they were staying out of the conversation. Well, that just wouldn't do.

"Nora, Ren, how would you two like to come with Jaune and I back home?" As stated, Jaune and I were heading back to Ansel for the break. Mom and dad had insisted that we come back so they could talk to Jaune in person and that it would be great to see me again. My trips back home were usually short, only a few days.

Nora perked up and Ren raised an eyebrow. "We wouldn't want to intrude." Nora deflated again.

Jaune just laughed good naturedly. "You guys wouldn't trouble us at all. I'm sure that my sisters would love to meet you guys." Nora perked up again.

I motioned to her. "See Ren, you can tell Nora would like to come. And what my brother says is absolutely correct. Mom and dad would love to meet you two, and our sisters would like to see our teammates." I looked over at Pyrrha. "I'm sure that they would like to meet Jaune's partner as well. Maybe you can head back early and swing by?"

She thought about it for a second before nodding. "I believe I could. My trip is only planned for a week." She smiled at Jaune. "If Echo is anything to go by, I would love to meet the rest of your family Jaune."

He smiled back at her. "Well, that's all settled then. When we're all done eating, we should pack and get ready for the trip. This is going to be great! I can show you guys the arcade and all the best places around!" He began to plan out the trip and I just lightly chuckled. Ren and Nora were looking happier, Nora actually eating now and Ren had a smile that was hidden by his tea cup.

Break was starting tomorrow, a Friday, so by the time we were ready and packed many people were flocking out of beacon to go about their break plans. We decided to leave out tomorrow, with me flying for the sake of having a flight to ourselves. Ren had almost begged me, nonverbally of course, to do it. Nora most likely would have bothered many people on a flight due to how excited she's been getting. Here we are, at nine thirty pm, and she's still practically bouncing off the walls with energy.

I decided to let Ren deal with her and went to sleep.

0-0

Oh, this was so exciting!

Nora was bouncing in her seat, newly installed in the back of Echo's Bullhead for long trips. Ever since the incident that caused her and Ren to be wanderers, she had never really had anyone else that called her family. That is, until she became part of Team JNPER. Echo called her team her third family, and that meant that she had a brother and two sisters! And there was also Ren that she was together with, but not together-together (even though she really wanted to be together-together with him but was too afraid to ruin their current relationship to talk with him about it).

And now she was going to see her family's family!

She looked over at Ren to see what he was doing. He was calmly reading a large book, something about the three kingdoms or something. Nora didn't really care that much about it, it seemed like too much reading. She liked Jaune's comic books better. And speaking of Jaune, she looked over to see what he was doing. He popped two motion sickness pills before pulling out one of his comics. He had packed a few to read on the flight, just planning like the leader he was!

"Hey Jaune-Jaune, can I borrow a few of those?" Nora had her music and a book in her bag, but she would like the comics much more than the book. At least for as long as they lasted. She was a fast reader. Blame it on Ren.

He simply smiled at her and handed her a few. "Sure Nora, just don't damage them. Those're rare editions that I got from Tukson's before he went out of business." He scratched at his chin. "I wonder where he went?"

"Dunno." Nora began to immediately read the stack of comics she had received. X-Ray and Vav were cool, but her favorite character was Mogar!

"Okay guys, we're almost ready to take off! Just give me five more minutes and we'll be on our way." Echo was doing her pilot thing, making sure they were ready to fly and stuff. Nora didn't really understand half the things that were said over the radio she was listening to, but if it meant they got flying sooner, she was all for it. She also didn't really understand half the dials and gauges on the panels, but that's why Echo was the pilot and she was just a passenger!

Soon they were all up in the air, making a bee-line out of Vale airspace. Nora thought that it would be cool if Echo got windows put in so that she could look at the ground passing below them. Then again, she also realized that Jaune wouldn't like that. Even with his motion sickness pills, if he was looking out a window, then he went green and began searching for the nearest trashcan. It was kinda funny to watch, but not to smell. Who knew that cereal smelled that bad coming back up?

She looked back at her two male friends to see what they were up to when she finished with the stack she had gotten. Jaune had gone to sleep, dangling slightly off the seat with his seatbelt being the only thing that stopped him from falling to the floor. Ren was still reading his book, but he was a few hundred pages further than he had been earlier. At least, that's what it looked like. She couldn't remember what page he had been on the last time she looked.

There was little turbulence, so she decided to see what Echo was up to up in the cockpit. She unbuckled herself, earning a glance from Ren. He just gave her a look that told her to behave herself and she happily nodded. She knew not to bother someone that was driving or flying. She knocked on the door and heard an affirmative grunt.

Echo was weird sometimes. Half of the times, she would be really happy and outgoing. But, then, she could also be this really gruff and calculating person. Nora wondered if she was bipolar or something. Shaking her head to clear it of thoughts, Nora opened the door and sat down next to Echo. Echo spared a glance to see who it was who had knocked and entered.

"Hey Nora, what's up?"

"Nothin' much, just wondering what you've been up to." Nora looked around at all the dials and gauges and buttons. She was tempted to push a few, but held back. This was Echo's, and she didn't want to mess anything up.

"Eh, not much. Just been quietly humming to myself to pass the time. Not much else to do while flying. Need to keep an ear on the radio for flight patterns and stuff." Nora just bobbed her head in understanding. Pilots probably couldn't listen to music to not be bored, so they had to pass the time in other ways.

"Okey dokey!" She patted Echo's shoulder and went back to sit with Jaune and Ren. Before she sat down she pulled out her headphones and her book. She plopped on down and began to read.

This was a good book.

0-0

Jaune woke up when his sister called out that they were five minutes from landing. He stretched and unbuckled himself. He rubbed at the spot where the belt had dug into his skin before his aura took care of it. He would be glad when Ren got him trained enough to use his aura to get rid of his motion sickness. Jaune picked up his pack and Crocea Mors, strapping his pack on and latching Crocea Mors to his waist. This would be an ordeal for him just as much calling back home was. He was prepared to beg and plead with his parents to let him stay at Beacon if he had to.

With everything ready and Ren and Nora getting their things together, Jaune gripped onto the loop of fabric hanging from the ceiling to keep himself ready for getting off. If he had stayed seated, he would probably be the last off. When he felt that they had stopped moving, he opened the door to the Bullhead. A bright wave of light entered and he had to shield his eyes for a moment before they readjusted. He stepped off, quickly followed by Ren and Nora.

"I'll be with you guys in just a moment! Go ahead and head to the house, Air Echo has to be put in the hangar." Of course, Echo had to stow her Bullhead before joining them. He could just see the faces on the workers when one of their own stepped out of the Bullhead. Well, more like someone they've known before, not really one of their own.

When Jaune and the other two stepped off the landing pad, Echo lifted off and slowly headed to the hangars. He decided to take the scenic route, showing Nora and Ren places he would be taking them later in the week. He pointed out the forge and the arcade, and Echo was with them before he had gotten to the park. She let him continue on though, which he was grateful for. She knew this meant a lot to him.

"And finally, to top it all off, here we are at The Fortress of Arc!" The declaration was met with a head slap from Echo.

"I swear to the gods, Jaune! Why would you follow dad's footsteps in calling it that? Just call it home. This place isn't going to be made into a museum or anything." Nora was giggling and Ren was looking at the two impassively.

"You don't know that!" And she didn't. The future was infinite. The Arc household could very well become a museum to detail the heroics of Jaune and his sister. And the rest of the family too.

"Sure, Jaune, and I'm actually a forty-two-year-old man." She rolled her eyes and walked up to the front door. Her small bag strapped to her back held the bare essentials, as she said that she wouldn't really need to bring anything other than her weapons and the small stuff.

Jaune followed her and took a deep breath before opening the door to allow everyone inside. "Mom, dad, we're home! And we have guests!"

Soon after he shouted out to his parents, they were coming from around a corner. They rushed up to him and gathered him into a large bone crushing hug. He would have been in pain if he didn't have aura, and Nora hugged harder than the two of them. She was scary strong. "It's good to see you safe Jaune." His father held him at arm's length. "And look at you. You're really starting to toughen up. Soon you'll be able to give me a run for my money." He laughed throatily before slapping Jaune on the back.

Jaune only slightly staggered before righting himself. "I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon dad. Anyways!" He motioned towards Nora and Ren. "Here are two of our teammates."

Jaune's mom walked up to them and pulled the two of them into a hug. "Hello you two! It's wonderful to finally meet you. Echo has been telling us all about you all."

Jaune spared a glance at Echo, who was looking up at a corner of the room whistling absently. He didn't know she was sending information back home. Nora took it all in stride and hugged Jaune's mom right back, lifting her off her feet. "It's so great to meet you too! Can I call you mom too? 'Cause Echo says we're just like a family and she says you're super nice!" She let Jaune's mom back down and stepped back.

"Of course you can sweetie! You must be Nora if that hug is anything to go by, so that means this young man must be Lie Ren." She looked over at Ren and he gave a low bow.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Mrs. Arc. I apologize for Nora's energy." He was surprised when Jaune's mom hugged him again.

"Oh, it's no problem. And don't call me Mrs. Arc, it makes me feel old. Just call me Juniper! Or mom like Nora wants to." Jaune smiled. He was glad his family liked his teammates.

He was pulled out of his happy mood when his father's hand landed solidly on his shoulder. "Jaune, may I speak with you out in the shop?" Jaune swallowed but nervously nodded his head. This was it.

0-0-0

I watched as Nicholas led Jaune out to the shop to talk with him. He was probably going to ask if being a Huntsman was really what Jaune wanted to do. Maybe try to dissuade him from continuing. It wouldn't work, I could tell him right now. Jaune was well on his way and he wouldn't change his path for anything in the world. Ren and Nora didn't seem to realize that their leader wasn't there anymore, as Juniper was keeping them occupied. She looked at me and quirked up her lip in a small smile.

"While I go show these two to the guest rooms you can go put your stuff up. Fleur's old room is available and still has the bed in it." She left me while Ren and Nora trailed after her.

I glanced towards the back door before heading to Fleur's old room. I hadn't been told she moved out, but it makes sense. She wouldn't be here forever, none of the girls would be unless they took over the house. I opened the door and walked in, taking in how empty the room looked now. She used to have a mirror hanging up and a few posters of boy bands, and there was a desk that sat against the left wall. Now none of that stuff was here. I put my pack down on the bed and sat down next to it, taking a deep whiff of the house. It felt good being back here.

I got up and placed my weapons next to the door before heading back to the bed and laying down. I didn't really realize how tired I had been until my head hit the pillow. I still couldn't go to sleep yet though, I had to talk with Juniper and Nicholas. They would want to know that Pyrrha would be coming by next week before we headed back. Also, Lily wouldn't forgive me if I didn't welcome her back after she got home from school. It was weird, thinking about her going to school. She was my age, physically of course, and she was going to a normal high school while I was out of normal schools ages ago.

I took out my scroll and looked at the time, twelve twenty.

Ugh, like three hours before she got out. My stomach growled and I sat up. Food would probably be a good thing right now. I get up and grab my hair, undoing the hair clips keeping the bun up. A long braid comes down and I slowly undo that. My hair is slightly tangled feeling, so I walk to the bathroom before heading to the kitchen, only to brush it out. I get a look of it in the mirror, and still marvel at how long it has gotten. My pink hair is now down to my waist. I never really think about it because I have it in the bun so often, but I could probably go for a haircut. I brush it out so it doesn't look like I just took it out of a braid, my locks were now flowing from my head almost like Yang's. I tuck the sides behind my ears and put my headphones back on.

I walk to the kitchen to see something sitting on the stove in a pot. I lift the lid and see that it's pasta in tomato sauce. I grab a spoon and give it a stir and chunks of meat show up along with the smell of spices. Juniper was probably working on lunch before we came in. I grab six bowls and dish up the pasta, adding in a little extra in Nora and Jaune's bowls. Nora because she normally eats more than us anyways and Jaune because he really needs it. He doesn't eat nearly as much as he should at lunch or dinner while we're at Beacon and whenever we go out he splurges on fast food.

I set the bowls out at the table and sit down, beginning to dig in. The food was just as I remembered, must be Juniper's cooking. Word of the wise, never let Nicholas cook anything other than toast if you want the kitchen to stay in one piece or have anything that is edible. Same goes for half of the sisters. I'm pretty sure that some of them could create some sort of biological weapon while trying to make a cake or something. My previous life experiences and living alone for years had allowed me to become my own master chef. Sure, I wouldn't get an award for presentation, but the taste was amazing if I do say so myself.

I was almost done with my portion when Nora, Ren, and Juniper showed up. Nora had a bright light shining in her eyes as she looked around the house, and Ren had a constant smile as he watched Nora Juniper met my wandering eyes and nudged her eyebrows up before glancing at the other two. She knew that they were not together-together but wanted to be from my letters, and she saw that for sure. I just nodded and motioned towards the food on the table.

"Thanks for the food, mom. It's just like I remember." For emphasis, I take a large bite and hum contentedly.

"That's good to hear." She waved the other two towards the table. "Go on and eat you two, I need to go make sure that Nicholas isn't trying to fight Jaune. Oum knows that he wants to." She went out the back door and shut it softly.

Nora was immediately going to town on the food with a pleased look on her face. Ren was more reserved, but the rate at which he ate betrayed his elated mood. Between a mouthful, Nora turned to me and gushed. "Your mom is awesome!"

Ren put his spoon down and wiped at his mouth. "Yes, your mother is quite the lady. Tell me, what was it like growing up here?"

"It was… interesting to say the least. All of our sisters were still living here when I lived here, but it's obvious that Fleur moved out at some point. Different personalities ensured that there were clashes almost every day, but the fact that we're family diminished the severity of them." I leaned over the table conspiratorially. "Half of the arguments were over who got to use the shower first. I just used the one out in the shop."

Nora giggled and Ren let out a low chuckle. Nora had a far off look in her eyes, no doubt imagining what I had just described. The silence went on for a bit longer while we ate before Ren spoke up again. "When were you adopted?"

I pushed my finished bowl away from me and leaned back in my chair. "I think it was… four days after I was born? I can't honestly remember exactly when it was, my memory is quite finicky. Mom and dad adopted me because they used to know my first family and they felt some sort of obligation to adopt me."

Nora stopped eating and lowered her spoon into her bowl slowly while Ren took in a deep breath to stabilize himself. "You were adopted that soon after you were born. What happened to your first family?"

"Died in a Grimm attack due to some pocket in the mines that were being dug by the SDC. It was a town that was close to Ansel, so I was flown back here and put in the hospital. As far as I know, I'm the only survivor of the attack." Their shocked faces were all I needed to see to understand that it hit them hard. They were comparing their own situation to my own. The shop door opening made me look away from them. "We can talk about this later."

Jaune was the first one in, and his clothes were slightly dirty and he was carrying Crocea Mors in his hand with the sheath still on his hip. Nicholas followed in after him with a small smile in his eyes but a pout on his face. He must have fought with Jaune to see how good he's gotten but Juniper reprimanded him for fighting his son while he was on break. Juniper was the last in with a scowl on her face. A+ for my deduction skills.

"Sit down and eat, honey, while Jaune goes and cleans up." Nicholas obediently went to his seat at the head of the table and began to eat. Juniper huffed and sat down next to him, beginning on her own bowl.

Silence reigned supreme until Jaune came back down in a different shirt and marginally cleaner. He didn't say anything until he sat down. "So, what do you guys want to do first today?"

"I want to go to the forge to see if they can improve Magnhild!" Nora slammed her hand down on the table, causing the bowls to bounce off the table slightly.

"Nora." Ren sternly said, and Nora skootched back in her seat. "I, for one, would like to see what you have in way of local herbs."

Jaune nodded and planned out a route to include those things. "What about you, Echo? Anywhere you need to go?"

I shook my head. "Not really. I mean, I was planning on going by Cherry's shop later to get a new outfit made. My old combat outfit doesn't really fit me as well as it used to, in size or style. But I'm going to stay here until Lily shows back up from school. She would be mad at me if I wasn't here when she got back."

He nodded at that. "You're right, she would. Do you have any other plans while we're here?"

I thought about it. "Eh, other than the clothes and spending time with family that's not you, not really."

He grasped at his heart, feigning injury. "Oh, how your words hurt me. I don't know if I can ever recover from this."

I smacked his arm. "Chum it up Jaune, you're going to have to deal with it for another thirteen days."

He groaned and rolled his eyes before wolfing down the rest of his food. "Would you look at the time, we need to head on out before foot traffic gets too bad. Come on you guys." He walked out of the kitchen and towards the front door and Nora and Ren followed after him after putting their own dishes into the sink.

I sighed and got up, walking over to the sink with my own bowl and got to cleaning the dirty dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. When I finished I leaned against the counter and looked at Nicholas and juniper. They were watching me but went back to their food when I turned around. "Is there anything new that has happened or is everything fine around here?"

They looked at each other warily before nodding slowly and looking back at me. "There have been more Grimm sightings along the walls." Nicholas was speaking. "And just last week, the White Fang were spotted in some alleys trying to recruit some of the younger Faunus. We don't know what the heck is going on."

I grimaced and shook my head exasperatedly. "Of course, they need more for the army they're building. And the Grimm are moving towards Vale I assume, this just happens to be in a direct path. Anything more than a few Beowolves, Ursa, and Boarbatusks?"

Nicholas held up a hand and shook it next to his face, a confused look soon appearing. "Wait wait wait, what was this about an army?"

I huffed through my nose before going and sitting down in my chair, slinging it around so I could rest my arms on the backrest. "Yeah, the White Fang is building up an army in Vale. They're working with Torchwick for some reason. Ozpin has me investigating them."

Juniper's eyes went wide. "Ozpin has you investigating a terrorist organization?! What is he thinking?"

"He didn't send me on it at first, but he learned a few things about me and I was inducted into his little 'save the world' group." I held up my hand, palm facing them. "And before you ask, I cannot tell you anything further than that. I probably told you too much already, you're just going to have to trust that I'll be fine. But about the Grimm?"

Nicholas took a breath to steel himself. "More than just the normal stuff. There have been a few Deathstalker herds and there have been a few Taijitu. No Emperors or Kings, but it would make sense if the Grimm keep moving like they are. We haven't seen any Fang members this week so far, but they could be hiding in the woodworks."

I nodded. "Sounds like them. Keep me updated on the situation here so I can report it to Oz. I'm going to head to Cherry's and get my order put in. I'll check a few places on the way to see if the Fang are still in town." I stood up and moved out the doorway before stopping and turning back, poking my head into the kitchen. "And next week Pyrrha will be here. Just saying."

I went to Fleur's room and grabbed my weapons before heading out the front door. Cherry's was in the center of town, near the forge and market, so I was likely going to run into the rest of my teammates while there. I was waved to many times just walking along the streets, people that knew me from before. I waved back and watched the new faces. A few new Faunus, but most of the faces were humans. At the mouths of some alleys, there were marks saying that there would be a meeting tomorrow just outside of the wall. I now have to pick up black hair dye.

When I walked into Cherry's the bell went off and she called out from the back. "I'll be right with you~!" A minute later, Cherry walked out of the back in all her red glory. She looked taller than the last time I saw her, but that was understandable. Her peach colored skin seemed to shine and her hair only accentuated her skin color. "Oh my gosh, if it isn't Echo Arc. What brings you back to this little shop? Aren't you living in Vale?"

I laughed and nodded. "It's good to see you again too, Cherry. Yeah, I live in Vale. Actually, I'm going to Beacon now."

She walked out from behind the counter and hugged me. "Congratulations." She stepped back and snapped her fingers. "I figured your dad yelling it out in the streets was just a joke. Even more when he said Jaune got into Beacon. How's he doing by the way?"

"He's doing great! He's the leader of the team I'm on, Juniper." I smiled when she raised an eyebrow. "Yes, like our mother's name. It's him, Nora Valkyrie, Pyrrha Nikos, me, and Lie Ren."

"Pyrrha Nikos?" She said disbelievingly. "You mean four-time champion Pyrrha Nikos?"

I nodded. "Yes, that Pyrrha Nikos. And she has a crush on Jaune. And he's still as dense as ever so he hasn't noticed."

She smacked her hand against her knee before laughing loudly. "It's just like him! Can't see the turtle for the shell in front of him!" She wiped a stray tear from her eye. "Anyhow, what are you doing here? I doubt you just walked in to catch up with an old friend."

I hummed affirmably. "You're right, I came in to put an order in. My old combat clothes aren't really fitting me now, and I need some new ones."

She smiled devilishly. "Oh, it has been too long. Let's get your new measurements." She dragged me over to her stage in the back. "Strip to your undies, you know the drill."

I scoffed but did as she said. She was eccentric, yes, but she could get work done in record times. She pulled out her measuring tape and got to work. She started from bottom and went to the top. When she got to my waist, I decided to tell her the plans for it. "I was thinking pants instead of shorts, this time in a darker color of blue. I need some more pockets. And then a dark green tank, and a dark pink or purple jacket. The material you use for the jacket is going to have to be thicker, it needs to be able to take a few hits before tearing or shredding."

She asked me to raise my arms before measuring under my bust. "That sounds reasonable enough. I think I have the materials right now, but if I don't then It'll be done by next week. Are you still going to be in town by then?"

I put my arms down and nodded. "Yeah, break lasts until the end of next week. And I mean next Friday. I hate it when people say next week and it's like the current week they're talking about. One of my pet peeves. Oh, I'm also going to need what I said but in black as well."

She stepped back and looked me up and down. "In black?" I nodded. "Echo, let me tell you that it wouldn't work with your hair."

"That's why I'm going to dye it for what I'm doing. And I'm going to need these before tomorrow evening."

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me. "And what are you doing tomorrow that requires all this?"

I smirk and begin to put my clothes back on. "Infiltrating a White Fang meeting."

"Are you crazy, girl!?" I hushed her and she scowled at me. "What are you thinking, infiltrating a White Fang meeting? I know that you're a Huntress in training, but that kind of stuff should be left to the professionals."

I step down from the stage and bounced on the balls of my feet. "Headmaster Ozpin has asked me to keep an eye out for any and all White Fang activity while in Vale. And I'm guessing that he also means while I'm out and about. And, he asked me personally."

"Wow." She was shocked, holding a hand over her heart. "That the headmaster of Beacon asked you to do it. He must trust you a bunch." Her eyes lit up. "Wait, does this mean I'm making spy clothes?"

"Yes, it means you're making spy clothes." She jumped around while clapping. "I swear, my life is crazy. Even more than Team RWBY's."

"Okay, if you come in tomorrow morning before eight, I'll have your stuff sitting out for you." She walked over to her little office room before walking back out with a key in her hand. "Here's the key to the shop so you can get in. Go on so I can get started, I have a lot of work to do." She ushered me out of the shop. "Have a nice day!" The door shut and the sign flipped from open to closed.

With that done, it's time to get the hair dye. I walk a block over to the super market and grab a packet of dye before someone saying my name gets my attention. "Echo Arc, is that you kid?" I turn to see who's speaking and see that it's Roan's dad.

"Hello sir, and yes it indeed Echo Arc in the flesh." I did a small bow and curtsy gesture. "How's Roan doing? Still getting into fights?"

He scowled. "No, he isn't. He really cleaned up his act."

I nodded and smiled. "That's good to hear sir. How's business?"

He grunted. "Same as ever. Not good, but not bad. We really need some more business. How's Beacon treating you, Vale?"

I swished my hand around. "Same as your business, not good but not bad. Had a run in with Torchwick a while ago. Almost arrested him before one of his accomplices got him out of there."

He chuckled. "Sounds just like you kid. I got to get going, this girl wanted to get an upgrade for her weapon." He held up a part that obviously went to Nora's hammer, only needed a few modifications. "Don't want to keep her waiting."

"No, you certainly do not." I look at the time. "If you have pancakes, she loves those. Keep those coming to keep her satisfied and she'll probably pay you more."

He just raised his eyebrow but didn't verbally question it. He walked up to the register and bought the part while I kept on browsing for some other things that might grab my interest. Spoiler, nothing did. I walked up to the register and paid for the dye. It was about two forty-five when I walked out, so I figured that I would walk on over to the school and meet up with Lily when she got out. I spotted a few more meeting markers on my way there. I swear, they're putting these things up on every street.

I reach the school as soon as the bell rings out, and students come flooding from the open doors. I wait out the rush sitting against a tree while looking for the telltale mop of bright blonde hair. I spot a few, but none of them are Lily. The crowd thins out, and people start to notice me. A few wave, and I wave back before they go off about their days. I'm about to give up when Lily walks out the doors, a slump in her posture. She just walked past me without looking up, so I'm pretty sure she didn't see me.

"And here I was thinking that you would be glad to see your sister." She stopped and spun around before pouncing at me. I wrapped my arms around her and twirled her around.

"Echo!" She laughed into my back. "Stop!" I stopped spinning and let her regain her balance. She was looking a little green. "When did you get back!?"

"I just flew in today." I started walking back home and she followed. "Jaune and two others on the team came with, so they'll be home later. He's taking them around right now. I am one hundred percent sure that you're going to love Nora. Just don't develop a crush on Ren, she loves the dude."

She hopped along happily. "Oh my gosh, it's going to be so great meeting them. Is Jaune's partner going to be here?"

I nod. "Yes, Jaune's partner is going to be here next week. She's in Mistral right now."

"Is it really-." I clamp a hand around her mouth. I let go and she frowns. "What, can I not say who it is?"

"I want it to be a surprise to as many people as possible. I'm going to have to tell Cherry to keep her mouth shut, now that I think about it."

She throws her head back and groans. "Come on, you told Cherry? You know she's going to tell all her friends as soon as she gets the chance. Before I forget! Fleur is going to be coming in next week too! The news station in Vale asked her to take a few interviews out here."

"She's working in Vale?" She nods happily. "Huh, go figure. More than half of us are going to be in Vale before the festival."

"We're all going to be there to cheer you guys on!" She grabbed onto by shoulder, leaning against me. "That way, we can all see how much you've improved. It's going to be awesome!"

I laugh at her enthusiasm. "Sure is." Now I had even more incentive to stop Cinder. My family couldn't be caught up in this.

The infiltration had to pull up new details.

0-0

"Wait, run that by me again?"

Roman was confused. Neo was standing in front of him holding her scroll up to his face. She pulled it away and typed something up shortly before shoving it in his face again. 'She's not in Vale anymore. She left out today with her Bullhead, or at least I can assume it's hers.'

Roman couldn't understand this. The girl that they had been watching almost never not showed up on Saturdays around Vale. She was always scouting around today. And now she was gone, on a break where she could be down here in the city twenty-four seven. But, with her gone now, it meant that he had an almost free reign on the city. He snatched Melodic Cudgel 2.0 from its resting spot against the table and placed his hat on his head.

"Let's get going while the going is hot."

 **A.N.- I apologize for how short this chapter is compared to the newer ones, but I didn't want to not meet the Sunday deadlines I made for myself. It's all because of class work and Destiny 2. I'll try to allocate more time to writing, but writer's block hit me today and I just got to writing this chapter yesterday. 7,800 something words in a few hours of actual writing sounds good. Anyways, that's all. I hope you all are doing wonderfully.**


	16. Echo of Samhain

Echo of Samhain

Halloween Special

Non-canon

(A.N. at the end of the chapter regarding updates.)

"Remind me why we're doing this again."

Echo rolled her eyes and turned to Jaune. "Because, Jaune, it's the first Halloween since the team got together. It's just one of those things that you have to do." Echo turned back to the mirror she was standing in front of to check on the last bits of her costume. She was wearing a tattered long jacket that was covered largely by a cape made of crow feathers, or small nevermore feathers. Nobody asked where she got these things, and nobody really wanted to. She tied her hair up and slipped on a beaked mask, donning a peaked cap to finish it off. "What do you think?" She gave a small spin to shot it to Jaune.

"Definitely spooky, but what are you supposed to be exactly?" He stood there scratching the back of his idly.

Echo huffed and shook her head, the movement exaggerated by her mask. "Eileen the Crow. Hunter of Hunters? Ring a bell?"

Jaune shook his head in a negative. "No, I'm pretty sure I would remember something like that. Sounds dark."

Echo nodded. "Yeah, it is. Perfect for the holiday though!" She looks back to the mirror. "I feel like I'm forgetting something now…" She suddenly stepped back and struck her left palm with a fist. "That's right! I'm missing the bell! I'll be back in a bit." She grabbed her wallet and rushed out the front door.

Jaune rolled his eyes. Leave it to Echo to forget something that didn't matter in the long run. It was just a bell, what difference could it make in the overall look of the costume. It's not like the others would care about it. Jaune was about to get into his own costume before the doorbell rang, signaling the arrival of the first guests. "I'll be right there!"

When he got to the door and opened it, a blur of pink and black dashed in. "I claim this table as the table of feasts! May all mighty warriors eat merrily at it with their brethren!" Nora was standing at the coffee table in the living room, holding Magnhild above her head victoriously. She was dressed as if she were a god of lightning.

"Nora, don't break Jaune's table. I'm sure his family wouldn't be happy if you did." Ren came in sedately after Nora and gave a nod to Jaune. "Thank you for inviting us, Jaune. It has been some time since we had something like this." Ren was dressed like a hopping zombie, one of those ones you see in an old Mistralian film.

"Nah, it wasn't really my idea. Echo said we just had to do this." He ushered Ren in and closed the door, disliking the cold wind blowing in

"Speaking of Echo, I believe we saw her rushing off towards town. Did she forget something?"

Jaune nodded and rolled his eyes again. "Yeah, she said she forgot the bell for her costume. I don't really think she needs it, but it's her costume, so who am I to judge?"

"Hey, Fearless Leader!" Nora appeared suddenly in front of Jaune. "Are we going to be just having a party, or are we going to go Trick-or-Treating? I brought my candy sack!" She pulled out a sack that was made from what seemed to be five pillow cases.

Jaune shrugged. "I'm not really sure, Nora. Echo didn't really fill me in on what we were going to be doing." They all got settled around the table and started to pick out scary movies from the collection his dad had. There was a surprisingly large amount of newer films among the collection. It was about the time that they chose one to watch first that the doorbell rang again.

Both Ren and Nora looked at Jaune and he huffed, getting up and stretching his back to get the soreness out. He reached the door and opened it before quickly ushering the person in. As soon as they were in, he shut the door, cutting off the cold air. "Hello!" For some reason, Pyrrha was in her normal combat gear instead of a costume.

"What are you supposed to be Pyrrha?" Jaune looked her over, trying to see if she had changed anything, but there was nothing different. She blushed lightly under his gaze.

"I figured that I could be the Goddess of Victory, since there are already costumes of me. What's better than the original?"

Jaune laughed. "Right, sometimes I forget you're super famous. Ren and Nora are in the living room. I'll be right back, I have to change into my costume." He hugged Pyrrha quickly and dashed up the stairs to his room. He had already laid his costume out on his bed, so it was only a minute later that he was finished. He slid down the railing of the stairs and pulled a cape to his nose. "I've come to suck your blood!" He was a vampire, his hair slicked back and wearing a nice vest with black slacks. The cape was black on the outside and lined with a red velvet on the inside.

Nora looked over at Pyrrha and waggled her eyebrows. "I'm sure Pyrrha wouldn't mind you-" She was cut off as Ren covered her mouth. His face contorted in disgust when she stuck her tongue out and licked his palm.

The front door opened, and Echo strode back in, closing it behind her. "And I'm back." The only thing Jaune saw changed from before was that she now had a small silver bell on a necklace. "So, Jaune, are they here yet?"

"Hello!" Pyrrha stuck her head out into the entryway.

"Awesome. So, what I have planned doesn't really happen until the moon is up about halfway, so we have a few hours to do whatever." Echo walked into the living room and saw Nora. "Hey! Nice Thor costume! And the zombie look really suits you Ren."

"You have a convincing looking Eileen costume. Where did you get the cloak?" He didn't see Jaune motioning for him to not ask until it was too late.

"Somewhere, it doesn't matter. I'm guessing that you guys picked out a movie or something." Nora held up the selected movie. "So, are we going to watch it first or go out Trick-or-Treating for a few hours?"

"Trick-or-Treating!" Nora bolted out the front door with her candy sack. Her other four teammates gave each other exasperated looks before following after the Valkyrie turned Norse God. They needed to catch up before she beat a hole into someone's door.

0-0-0

They returned two hours later tired but satisfied with themselves. Nora had practically cleaned everyone out, leaving only a few pieces of candy left in the bowls of frightened adults. A Huntress in training with a massive hammer was something to be afraid of on Halloween. "Look at my haul! This is going to be sweet!"

Ren sighed. "Nora, don't eat that all tonight. You know what happened the last time." He hoped to never see regurgitated candy like that ever again.

"Fine." She slumped her shoulders. "A fourth…?"

Ren narrowed his eyes. "An eighth."

"Gah." Nora held her heart as if wounded. "How could you Ren? I thought you understood me."

Pyrrha, Jaune and Echo laughed at the two. Echo took a look at the clock and pushed everyone into the living room. "We should get the movie started now. We don't have much time to get ready after it since we cut it close with Trick-or-Treating."

"Geez, is this super important to you? I think the last time you were like this was when you really wanted…" Jaune stopped speaking when he saw the glare that was sent his way. "Never mind, message received."

Everyone sat down and got comfortable while Echo popped the movie into the player. "If you are squeamish, or are grossed out by the sight of blood, we'll tell you when to look away." She pressed play and the title screen popped up, showing a bloody knife being held by a man wearing a plain white mask. She pressed play again and the movie started.

0-0-0

Jaune had to hide his face multiple times, but he was the only one that was freaked out. Nora had even laughed at some of the less probable kills, stating that nothing like that could ever happen. Pyrrha was trying to comfort Jaune, telling him the movie was over and everything was going to be alright. After looking at the clock again, Echo blinked. "Oh frickle! Jaune, grab your weapon and meet us outside." She dashed out, leaving the front door swinging.

"I guess it's time for whatever she was wanting to do?" Pyrrha pulled Jaune up and helped him to his room, where Crocea Mors was leaning against the wall.

They gathered on the driveway as Echo drew something on the ground using a stick of chalk. "What are we doing exactly?" Ren looked at the circle that Echo was drawing and couldn't say if he knew what it was supposed to be for.

"Step in the circle when I'm done and you'll find out." She tossed the chalk away and pulled out a vial of a thick reddish black liquid. She poured the liquid around the perimeter of the circle. "Alright, everyone in. Huddle up. Don't be afraid to hug each other to fit." They all squeezed into the circle. "And here we go." Echo rang the silver bell around her neck and it let out clear, crisp chimes.

Everyone felt a sense of vertigo before their surroundings changed completely. Gone was the Arc household and trees that surrounded it. Instead, there were now gravestones and some sort of white flower dotting the few grassy areas. Echo was the first to step out of the circle, and she was followed shortly by the others. "What was that?" Jaune was trying to keep his food in his stomach, and Pyrrha was the one who asked in his stead.

Instead of answering, Echo simply pointed up. They followed her finger and their jaws dropped. Sitting in the night sky was the moon, but not the moon they knew. It was whole. Whole and a bright red that seemed unnatural. "Welcome to the Hunter's Dream everyone. Gherman asked for me to get some Hunters together for Samhain. While the regular people scare away the lesser spirits, we're here to get rid of the big nasties." She walked up to the doors of the small building before pushing them open. "Oy, Gherman, we're here."

"Good, good. Not a moment to waste." The man sitting in the wheelchair spun around and looked at the group. "Four cloths then. I was expecting more."

Echo snorted. "I would have brought more, but they were in Patch. Didn't need to bring them over to Ansel just for this." She took the cloth masks that Gherman handed to her and tossed them to the rest of the group. "Whatever you guys do, don't let the blood get into your mouth."

Jaune looked at the others as they fixed the masks to their faces. "What do you mean, 'Don't let the blood get into our mouths'?"

"Put on the mask Jaune, we're heading out and cleaning the streets." He did as she said and she guided them to a grave after waving bye to Gherman. The grave was weathered, showing signs of years of no upkeep. White hands carried a small cup filled with a strange liquid to where someone could grab it if they kneeled. "Once you're in, head to the center and wait there for everyone else. Kill literally everything in your way, even if they look like humans." Echo grabbed the cup and put it to her lips. "Remember, no blood in your mouth." She tipped her head back and drank the shimmering liquid. She faded out of existence and everyone followed her example.

0-0-0

It was some sort of hell, that's all they could think. The streets were familiar, but twisted in a demented way. It was Vale they were in, but buildings were broken and leaning over the streets. Entire buildings were missing, black voids in their places instead. They met up easily, the monsters being no challenge for the Hunters in training with their Aura. Echo's warning made sense though, as whenever one of the monsters was cut, geysers of blood would shoot out of them. Even the human like ones were mad looking, red with twisted elongated limbs.

"Is everyone here?!" Jaune asked, hiding behind a cart in the main square.

"I'm here." Pyrrha answered from her position on a low rooftop.

"We're here." Ren answered from a large hole blasted into the ground, Nora sitting beside him. She really didn't like this place.

They had cleared the area out a few minutes ago, but there was still no sign of Echo. Jaune was beginning to get worried until a crashing came from down the street. His head whipped towards the sound and his eye began to twitch. Coming down the street at break neck speed was Echo, but following her was a massive skeletal beast. "Whaddup?!" There was a hissing sound from the beast and she dodged out of the way to avoid a black mist emitted from the beast's maw.

"Nora!" Jaune shouted for the hammer wielder. "Knock its feet out!"

"Roger roger!" Nora unleashed two grenades on its front legs, knocking it down. It immediately got back up and focused on her. The legs she had hit were bathed in a black glow, and the cracks that had formed were repaired. "Too spooky!" She dodged out of the way when the beast lunged. Ren was slightly slower and was blown away from the force of its landing.

Pyrrha let out a few pot shots to gain its attention and then quickly darted back behind cover when its attention was off Nora. It couldn't focus on more than one opponent at a time. Jaune got a running start behind it and jumped high enough to land on its back. It spun and bucked, trying to get him off, but he had plunged his sword into its spine and was repeatedly bashing his shield into the bones of its ribcage. It stopped spinning and took a deep breath again. "Jaune, get off it!" Echo called from her spot in an alleyway.

Jaune got the hint and pulled his sword from it, getting off just in time as it was enveloped in a black mist. "What now?"

"Get back, it's about to change." Echo gave him a hand up and dragged him to a hiding spot above the square, across the way from the building Pyrrha was on. The mist dissipated when a hand slammed on the ground, showing the monster had grown skin and hair. It stood up on two legs and laughed. The sound was spine chilling.

"Come out, come out. Let Darkiplier help you with your problems."

"Oh, you have got to be shitting me. This is one big meme right now, and a dead one at that. He shouldn't even be here." And, as if her words were law and truth, Darkiplier immediately died and withered where he was standing. "Prey Slaughtered. Let's get home and forget this disappointing shit. Happy Halloween everybody."

 **A.N.- Hey, just wanting to let everyone know that I'm going to be not updating this story for some time while I write more on my other stories. My motivation comes and goes in waves and college is an ongoing thing. So, if this doesn't get updated for another month or two, the other stories I write should be coming along. Sorry and thank you in advance. Stay safe.**


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